When I left the country, two events had occurred for which I don’t think I’ll be able to see that country in a good light ever again.
The first was the anti-Sikh riots after Indira Gandhi’s murder. Politicians were compliant, including the newly elected PM Rajiv Gandhi who at the time famously said “When a tree falls, it’s normal for the earth to shake”. Of course, I haven’t even touched on the events leading up to this, most notably the destruction of the Golden Temple. I spoke to people who saw the riots first-hand, and it tainted my view of that country forever.
The second was the Indian intervention in neighboring Sri Lanka. The oppressed Tamil minority were waging a war against the government. India sent in its forces, in the name of brokering peace and then killed thousands of innocent civilians. The Indian man’s propensity for rape was on full display, as the Indian “Peacekeeping” Force (IPKF) weaponized rape against the same populace they came to protect. For what it’s worth, India was humiliated a la Vietnam, and lost thousands of soldiers.
The rape issue is also very apparent in modern day Indian society, but I’d rather not open that can of worms in this thread.
In either case, after witnessing these happenings from relatively close, I gave up on all hope for that country. Too many rotten apples.