We know that religion can be a source of comfort and motivation for soldiers. It can also be a source of conflict in a multifaith army. How then do religiously diverse armed forces engage religion? How do they maintain cohesion while recruiting from a religious society, and while conducting operations in multireligious environments? By drawing on theexperience of the multireligious Indian armed forces, which have recruited from and operated in a society beset with religious conflict, this presentation will identify the specific challenges religion poses for the military and will outline the institutional mechanisms it relies upon to cope with these challenges.

Amit Ahuja is Assistant Professor of Political Science at UCSB.  He received his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in 2008.  His research focuses on the process of inclusion and exclusion of ethnic groups across different institutions in multiethnic societies.  

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