Many Indians can’t stand living with each other – today’s uncivil politics reflects this

Chatting with a well-known author recently, I observed that the green, peaceful part of Delhi in which she lived seemed like quite a contrast to my rambunctious colony.

In our complex, life seems to be marred by fistfights almost every day, conflicts about parking that have resulted in FIRs being filed, shootouts and murders and quarrels between neighbours about balconies being extended.

She burst my bubble by telling me about the constant arguments between two of her neighbours. One squabble ended up with the lady on the first floor urinating on the lady on the ground floor.

In an adjacent colony, an upmarket enclave, it was a fight over stray dogs. One of the residents is an animal rights activist who zealously feeds street dogs. But there are growing cases of dog bites. Residents argued with her and demanded compensation. She filed an FIR accusing them of extortion.

There are umpteen anecdotes in India’s metropolises about neighbourhoods that lack neighbourliness. Such experiences of urban battlefields are often recounted in drawing room conversations about how the atmosphere is so much better in India’s tier two towns, where neighbours are like members of the extended family.

The state and politicians do not merely implement policies in a top-down fashion. They base their...

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