Why is it that a country united by a civilisation for millennia, has people who at the level of daily life, are so easily divided? Of course, we have also always been a land of differences of opinion, but must this healthy diversity spawn a natural talent for factionalism? There is an old, weary truism that encapsulates our public culture with devastating accuracy: If there are four Indians in a room, they will inevitably form two rival groups. This relentless choreography of fission can be seen in the grand arenas of national politics down to the petty fiefdoms of Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs), sports bodies, culture and clubs.

To understand this endemic fractiousness, we must honestly examine our own character. The proclivity to split is driven by a potent mixture of unyielding ego, lack of discipline, ideological flexibility, expedient sycophancy and a structural obsession with hierarchy. In a society where status has historically been determined by one’s place in a rigid social ladder, the impulse to impose one’s will becomes paramount. Family, kith, regional and community loyalties impose additional incentives for disunity. In the Indian worldview,........

© hindustantimes