Challenge: Indian-led "Chindia"

Your challenge is to create a unified Indian and Chinese state with a POD no earlier than 1900 that is ruled/politically dominated by its Indian portion by the present day.

Is it possible?
 
Have something like the Austria-Hungary where the same person is the Emperor of both India and China. Maybe a TL where China is colonized by the same European monarchy that also rules India. Then have the monarchy move over to the two colonies due to a republican/communist takeover in home country. Then have Indian culture become more influential of the two, especially as far as imperial customs are concerned.


also, a Buddhist *caliphate in 600s that unites all of Asia?
 
Damn, wrote a couple of paragraphs on an idea, but then had to leave and didn't save it. NVM- you’ll notice the start is very vague, because I cannot be bothered re-writing it.

Um, concisely: Have the Nationalists remain more of a unified block in China, and take advantage of the Japanese-allied warlords following the war. The Chinese civil war ends up differently, with a communist Manchuria (yes, that is almost a cliché by now isn't it?) and a Soviet friend Inner Mongolia and possibly Xingjian as well. (There are like a million PODs here anyway… )

With the threat of the USSR looming on it's new Northern border (a ceasefire line, sort of like the Korean war I am guessing), China seeks new friends elsewhere- initially the USA and UK et al.

Just as in OTL, China will be wary of the USSR- just even more in the earlier years. But we need another POD around this time- something to spook India firmly into the Western Camp, unlike OTL.

One idea is for a much worse 1947 or later Indo-Pakistani war. In this scenario perhaps the Soviet Union could be somewhat (I'm talking very mild, to even only perceived) supportive of Pakistan. Coupled with government propaganda, the Indian populace could become very suspicious of the USSR, and the country as a whole would move more towards the USA and the West. In response Pakistan would move closer to the Soviet Union.

With no large PRC the issue of Tibet would be much different. Would the Soviets influence Tibet via Xingjian? I doubt it; but fears would fester in both the larger ROC and India. Efforts by both countries would made to help develop the country, and make it firmly friendly. Perhaps this would be the start of the ROC-Indian relationship?

A triple military agreement with ROC, India and Tibet, protecting each side from the Soviet Union and it's allies in the region. Of course such an alliance would take a lot of trust from either side, and would be years in the making. A different military doctrine from the Soviet and the West would be required- and expanded version of the 'Domino effect' that would see hordes of Manchurian, Pakistani, Turkic and Russian troops pouring into the industrial and political heartlands of China and India. Such an alliance would not be so much for aid should a war arise, but rather a deterrence. An attack on one member would open up a frontline thousands of kilometers long, surely stretching the forces of both sides and creating an unacceptable bloodbath.

As the decades continue I would imagine that China and India working together could become powerful tiger economies, albeit with a couple of twists. To begin with both nations have very high rates of poverty- much more so than the relatively small OTL tiger countries. But they would have the basics- a conservative society that is not a liberal democracy (important for what could be unpopular reforms and a lack of internal spending). They would focus on native manufacturing to start with, then try to entice foreign companies into the country. I think that British firms would have somewhat of a head start in India, with relations between the two nations not as distant as in OTL. These companies could then move into China from India. China itself would develop strong links with Japan and later on the USA. This intermingling of commerce would encourage freer trade agreements, a greater commitment to private property rights and domestic investment.

About now you can probably see where I am going- a free-trade zone between China and India. And from that you could have some sort of EU analogue happen. I think that this would take a long time, and to have such an organization even as close as the EU is today would be ASB; so a couple more things need to happen, before the two nations are a single country.

Firstly it would have to be in both countries interests to have their activities governed by a greater body. Since relations would be friendly already, I don’t see a union forming for the sake of preventing wars (similar to the old European Steel and Coal Commission). However, maybe the immense cost of building and up keeping trans-Himalayan road and rail links could be the impetus for a joint body that could oversee such projects, and distribute funding, especially if Tibet is still independent. Eventually other major transport works could be overseen by this body, including canals, airports, freight rail, high speed rail and ports. A major combined body could also represent both nations to foreign investors or trade organizations.

To really boost the importance of such a union, have the former Soviet Union and it’s Asian satellites begin to attract massive foreign investment in the post-cold war world, in a similar manner to OTL China, and the South East Asian states. Assuming this all goes well, the Indian and Chinese economies would be much bigger than OTL, and as such there would be considerably less poverty and less opportunity for cheap labor. Manchuria might just be a promising location to site dirty factories and manufacturing.

As Russia recovers it too will draw the world’s investment away from the developed China-India partnership and result in a slight slowdown of growth. In response more internal trade would be sought, even more barriers would have to be removed and a passport free zone, complementary tertiary educational systems and equal residency in both countries could happen. Coupled with the already integrated infrastructure and military co-operation it would only be a matter of time before a merger of judicial and legislative functions happen. When that happens, you essentially have one big China-India union.

Okay, that is pretty much ASB I know, and I know next to nothing, about well, anything. It doesn’t even take into account the zillions of butterflies that are going to happen here. Oh well…

Oh, and in my excitment, I even forgot to make India the dominent player- though with a smaller China than OTL, and more English speakers in India, perhaps India could end up slightly more dominant. ???
 
This is very difficult but this is how I see it happening -

  • Britain aquires territory in Southern China and Tibet in the Opium Wars. Also, Shanghai ceded to Britain as a Treaty port.
  • Britain governs the territory under the Indian Viceroyalty, along with Burma.
  • Japan invades China in 1931, which eventually leads to confrontation with the British and possibly the French, in the mid-1930's.
  • Britain mobilises millions of Indians and Chinese to defeat Japan.
  • After defeat of Japan, Britain is at war with Nazi Germany and is bankrupted and weakened by fighting two world wars.
  • Britain creates an Indian Federation in the late 40's as a bulwark against communist intentions in Asia.
  • The new Indian Federation is granted independence in the early 50's under the leadership of Jawahalal Nehru. Britain does not partition Pakistan, Bangladesh, Burma, Tibet, and the Chinese provinces from India.
 
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