The East India Company suppressed missionary activity to protect commerce with Muslims.

Evidence

Despite the shared conviction among many Britons and Americans that Islam stood in inherent antagonism to Christianity and the sentiment among some that it should be destroyed, Britons in India – especially those serving the government – remained conflicted about how to proceed. Although some of its servants viewed Muslims as antithetical to Company aims, the EIC preferred to minimalize Christian missionary activity, concerned that resulting antagonisms might disrupt commerce. … The Bengal government justified itself to the Court of Directors through allusion to the principles of toleration practiced in England toward minorities, notably Jews and Catholics. — Peter Gottschalk and Gabriel Greenberg, Common Heritage, Uncommon Fear, 109

Categorization

• XREF: Resonates with imperial-pragmatism-vs-ideology tensions in other colonial contexts and with modern corporate risk-avoidance.