The Indian jihadist movement

The direct threat to India from its indigenous jihadist movement is manageable and unlikely to impact the country's forward progress or wider regional stability. It is a symptom of political, socioeconomic, and communal issues that India arguably would need to address even if indigenous jihadism disappeared tomorrow. An attack or series of attacks by indigenous jihadists, however, start a wave of communal violence in India or trigger a diplomatic crisis with Pakistan. With or without Lashkar-e Taiba assistance, the Indian mujahideen constitutes a potential, but minimal, direct threat to U.S. and Western interests in India.