What does India First mean?
Foreign interests are quick to dilute any initiative that tries to create a critical mass of Indians who think solely on behalf of India. This is compounded by Indian ruling classes, both resident and non-resident, who are cluelessly aligned with foreign interests. Further, India’s ruling classes have no interest in operating the country as a Liberal Democracy. Independent India owes its existence to the Constitution of India which coalesced a diverse set of populations under the auspices of a Liberal Democracy. But, even the most educated Indians don’t understand the meaning of Liberal Democracy.
We took all these factors into account when formulating the pre-requisites for an India-Firster. The pre-requisites are:
- Appreciates Indian identity and diversity without violating principles of a Liberal Democracy
- Treats all Indians as equals regardless of religion, caste, class, region, skin colour
- Views India as a global power that is not subservient to any other country/civilization
- Aligns career goals with India’s strategic goals
- Doesn’t work for foreign interests to the detriment of India’s interests
- Encourages products built by Indian companies
- Is obsessed with making India self-reliant, particularly in technology & finance
- Is obsessed with up-skilling fellow Indians to world class standards
- Is a rational, independent thinker who focuses on India’s problems, not personalities or political parties
- Behaves as a role model for fellow Indians
It does not require all Indians to be perfect human beings for India to be a global power. It is our view that 0.01% of Indians i.e., roughly 1 Lakh in number is all that is required to change the destiny of this nation. These individuals are a subset of the Indian Establishment which itself is a subset of the Indian Influencer Class (see How should the Indian system operate to achieve strategic goals?). India-Firsters should:
- be driven by the sole ideology of India First
- align on India’s strategic goals and
- work every single day to achieve these goals.