The Unfinished Quest by T.V. Paul: A Reminder of Where India Lacks in Becoming the Global Power

What a day to be talking about T.V. Paul’s ‘The Unfinished Quest’ when India has escalated itself to become the fourth largest economy in the world, surpassing Japan. Paul, who has been the president of the International Studies Association and a key figure in the formation of the Global Research Network for Peaceful Change, mentions in his book- which must be remembered as the country celebrates the victory- that the growth in the GDP does not suffice without the improvement in the living standards of the citizens. 

An Oxford University Press publication, the book explores various stances within the realms of shifting power since 1947 while stressing the importance of taking the “right route” to undo the aftermath of an unequal system enforced by Western imperialism, colonialism, and racialism. 

With India gaining independence, Jawaharlal Nehru’s policies became crucial, and the book takes the major events into account. From a call to the ceasefire in Kashmir to bringing the non-aligned countries together, it covers India’s role. Paul has also covered Nehru’s inclination towards the “Westminster-style democracy”. Paul details Nehru’s influence and recognition globally till in 1962 when China’s intrusion, as per him, questioned the many shortcomings India was dealing with. 

Talking of China, Paul, who is also a professor in the Department of Political Science at McGill University, has spent ample time researching and writing about the influence and impact of China and Pakistan over the years, with powers being passed on from one regime to another. 

The shift in powers in India has certainly seen a substantial outlook for India in the Geopolitical arena, and Paul has aimed not to miss these intricate and larger changes that have influenced India back. The sudden death of the former prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri was the turning point for Indira Gandhi in the internal landscape, while the U.S. support for Pakistan from Paul’s initial pages, too. 

The global status of India has been dominated, or rather, tarnished, post the 1971 war, followed by the rebellion of the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka, which also failed, Paul notes, while also putting the positive contrasts for the country with its nuclear tests at Pokhran, and the introduction of economic reforms in 1991.

The country has come a long way since then, and today, India has many internal and external pressing issues. With another major power shift that the country is witnessing, Paul comments that “Hindutva ideology” will not be able to escalate India’s position across the globe and might as well call for regression. He emphasises the need for a change in the country's empirical narrative. 

Marinating a similar ideological ethos, Paul states, ‘The multidimensional civilisational assets of India have great actual and soft-power significance.” And, on the very next sentence, highlights that the foremost is the unique peace-generating ethos inherent in Hinduism, Buddhism and other minority religions like Islam, Jainism, Sikhism and Christianity as practised in India.

Along with this, Paul has made sure to not erase the erstwhile history of India with the medieval rule of the Muslim kingdoms and how has it influenced both India and its relations with the later Pakistan.

A lot of Paul’s analysis is also relevant to the current scenario, like the recent India-Pakistan military conflict, which followed the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22 this year. He writes, “Military Prowess as a status marker is useful if the forces have global reach, but in India’s case, they are tied down largely by border conflicts and internal security threats and are not geared for major global missions in the foreseeable future.”

In the era when technology is witnessing something new every single day, Paul points out, towards the denouement, how global prowess cannot be achieved without tapping into it. One of the pages in the latter half has him saying: “The third hard-power marker of the progress of the rising power is in Science and Technology,” while giving some space to the space-related achievements like the successful landing of a vehicle on the Moon’s south pole. 

In this well-researched and detailed book, Paul has certainly not missed the woods for the trees. One explores where India is and where it lacks in becoming a global power, which, at this time, becomes crucial to understand when it is gaining applause for being a step ahead and closer to the destination. Thus, justifying the titular piece about the quest which remains unfinished, the book justifies the reader's quest on the subject.