This article reviews India’s political, economic, and strategic trajectory in 2025. Domestically, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party consolidated political control with electoral successes, even as tensions surrounding minority rights, caste politics, and center–periphery relations persisted. Economically, India maintained robust growth despite heightened uncertainty stemming from US trade policy. The Indian economy benefited from policy stimulus, export diversification, and selective sectoral exemptions in US tariffs. Internationally, India faced serious diplomatic challenges, particularly following military clashes with Pakistan and a sharp deterioration in US–India relations under a second Trump presidency. In response, New Delhi leaned more heavily into multialignment, pursuing détente with China, reaffirming ties with Russia, and expanding economic diplomacy elsewhere. Taken together, 2025 highlights how India’s growing power expands its strategic options while New Delhi has not escaped the challenges of societal heterogeneity at home nor a challenging era of great-power politics abroad.
Christopher Clary (Sun,) studied this question.