There is a silent secular majority in the country that wants absolutely nothing to do with this drivel (i.e., the slide referred to in the parent and what some politicians say as referred to in the GP post).
We have always had crackpots (sometimes crackpots in positions of power/influence) who spout nonsense on all flavors of political ideology. Unfortunately, media (traditional and social media) amplifies the nonsense.
As a secular Indian, I highly doubt that majority, or even plurality of Indians are secular. If anything, I've seen most of my friends go from being secular to conservative moderates/hardliners in last few years. I know quite a few people who would support Muslim genocides, including my family.
Agree with you, majority are going from secular to conservative. May be the secular party should ask why.
But also want to add that Indian version conservatives aren’t really comparable to the western one. Just take this issue on evolution itself Hindus and Buddhists are among the most who believe in evolution.