Political Theology and Standby Citizens: Interests and rationales in Christian political participation in Indian democracy

Existing literature often portrays Indian Christians as politically passive or apathetic. However, recent studies on political participation have shown the limitations of studying political participation within the framework of the dichotomy of active and passive citizens. The discussions around concepts such as ‘standby citizens’ and ‘monitorial citizens’ have shown that, besides interests (or lack of it), political participation is shaped by different rationales in the political culture. This essay analyses the various interests and rationales at play in Indian Christianity within the current political climate in India, which I will argue needs to be taken into account to understand Christian political participation in India.