Indian Politics Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

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- Sociology, Cultural Studies, Sociology of Religion, Anthropology

Across the world, governments design and implement policies with the explicit goal of promoting social justice. But can such institutions change entrenched social norms? And what effects should we expect from differently designed policies? This book is an empirically rich study of one of the most extensive electoral quota systems in the world: the reserved seats for the Scheduled Castes (SCs, the former “untouchables”) in India’s legislative assemblies. Combining evidence from extensive quantitative datasets, archival work, and in-depth interviews with politicians, civil servants, activists, and voters across India, the book explores the long-term effects of electoral quotas for the political elite and the general population. It shows that the quotas for SCs have played an important role in improving social justice for SCs in some ways, primarily by weakening the status hierarchy associated with the caste system. The extent and nature of the gains in social justice have not, however, been what all advocates of these quotas had expected or hoped for. This is a study of India, but the findings and discussions have broader implications. Policies such as quotas are usually supported with arguments about various assumed positive long-term consequences. The nuanced discussions in this book shed light on the trade-offs inherent in how these policies are designed, and lays the groundwork for a comparative research agenda on the politics of inclusion.

The first comprehensive and authoritative work covering the entire public sector in India, including the public sector banks and the insurance companies as well as the public sector enterprises in the states, the book begins with the philosophy behind the public sector and traces their evolution in India and their subsequent privatisation and disinvestment after the economic liberalisation of 1991. Based on the most up-to-date data and the latest developments, it examines the plight and options before a public sector paralysed by excessive government interference and now trapped hopelessly between the State and the market. Drawing widely upon global experiences, the book argues that disinvestment and privatisation need not be the only answer to reform the public sector companies. They can be rejuvenated and transformed into global champions if freed from the stifling controls by an unimaginative government machinery and depoliticized, with separation of the Government’s roles as shareholder, policy-maker and regulator, along with changing their holding structure.

The forthcoming general elections to be held in 2014 in India make an interesting but intriguing study. BJP seems to be the biggest challenger to Congress. It is intriguing as htere is no difference between these two contending parties so far as economic and political policies are concerned. However, BJP is gaining ground against Congress due to incumbency factor. The gains of AAP in Delhi in Assembly elections show that whereever there will be an alternative to Congress-BJP, electorate will choose the third alternative. This issue is discussed in the light of 2013 Assembly election resultss.

- by Shamsul Islam
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- Indian Politics, Hindutva, India Elections 2014

Partly prompted by the current social unrest in India regarding the reservation policy and partly stimulated by the facts of the matter, I begin the process here of looking at the issue of reservation and social justice in a slightly... more

- by S.N. Balagangadhara
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- Indian Philosophy, Indian studies, Modern Indian History, Indian Law

‘The RSS: A View to the Inside’ is a very good read for all those who are interested in knowing
about internal workings of Hindu organizations and India itself. Through case-study method, the authors
have attempted to shed light on most pressing issues faced by Sangh in recent times and how it has
transformed and continues to do so to make itself relevant, socially acceptable and maintain
cohesiveness within itself.

- by Fahad Nabeel
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- Indian studies, Indian Politics, RSS, India

There is a argument that the Communal violence is primarily due to caste contradictions. Religion has a role in the violence.

This is a review of my co-edited volume by Gianluca Passarelli, political scientist at Sapienza University in Rome.

- by Cedric de Leon and +2
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- Sociology, Political Sociology, American Politics, Comparative Politics

Implementation of the environmental agendas put forward in the election manifestos of 2014 of eight major political parties is found to be unsatisfactory. There is a need for more synergy between the election agendas and their... more

Implementation of the
environmental agendas
put forward in the election
manifestos of 2014 of eight
major political parties is found
to be unsatisfactory. There is a
need for more synergy between
the election agendas and their
implementation to tackle
environmental issues and the
impacts of climate change.

- by Asi Guha and +1
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- Sociology, Anthropology, Climate Change, Political Ecology

Pour les observateurs de la plus grande démocratie du monde, le mot « participation » évoque surtout le pourcentage d'électeurs qui se rendent régulièrement aux urnes. Pourtant, depuis les années 1990 de nouvelles pratiques émergent et se développent en Inde, qui ont en commun d'organiser une interaction directe entre citoyens et autorités publiques, autour de la gestion des affaires locales. Mais à quoi ressemble la démocratie participative dans cette société profondément inégalitaire ? Comment la participation est-elle organisée, autour de quels types de dispositifs ? À quelles idées politiques est-elle associée ? À quels discours, à quelles expériences passées fait-elle référence ? Les dynamiques qui portent le développement des pratiques participatives indiennes sont-elles surtout endogènes ou exogènes ? Et que peut nous apprendre cette version indienne sur la démocratie participative en général ? Pour répondre à ces interrogations, ce livre propose une analyse sérielle de quatre dispositifs élaborés et mis en oeuvre dans la ville-État de Delhi, qui constitue un véritable laboratoire de la participation à l'indienne : les « comités de circonscription » ; les « audiences publiques » ; le programme Bhagidari (« participation» en hindi) ; et les assemblées de quartier. L'enquête montre comment les formes successives de la démocratie participative révèlent autant de définitions du « citoyen ordinaire » qui leur sont associées. À travers une analyse de l'incarnation, des transformations et des mésaventures de la participation depuis les années 1950, le livre raconte le lent et sinueux processus d'institutionnalisation de la démocratie participative en Inde.

- by Stéphanie Tawa Lama
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- Participatory Democracy, Indian Politics, Urban Governance

OPEN LETTER TO PM MODI
SIR, YOU RESPECT DIVERSITY BUT RSS MOURNS IT, WHOM DO WE BELIEVE?
My Dear Prime Minister Modi ji,
Namaskar.
It is heartening to note that you as PM of our democratic-secular state have underlined the great diversities in the Indian nation which needed to be celebrated. While addressing a conference on 'Islamic Heritage: Promoting Understanding and Moderation' in the presence of the King of Jordan, Abdullah II in Delhi on March 1, 2018 you were kind enough to declare that India's democracy was "a celebration of our age-old plurality" recalling that "religions and beliefs from all over the world" flourished in the country. It was great to hear you to commit that "We Indians are proud of our diversity." While specially addressing the Muslim youth of India you were kind enough to advise them to hold Quran in one hand and computer in the other for an all-inclusive progress and welfare. However, I would beg to say that this call for Quran or any other scripture in one hand is a risky proposition. The US taught Afghan youth Quran in one hand and AK47 in other hand and what price Afghan Muslims paid for it is well known.
Read the whole letter....

- by Shamsul Islam
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- Hinduism, Human Rights, Race and Racism, Indian studies
- by Hilal Ahmed
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- Religion and Politics, Indian Politics, Representation Theory, Muslim Politics

This piece is a rejoinder to a big fixer & ideologue of the RSS, Ram Madhav's article (‘What Dalits want’, The Indian Express, April 14) on Dr Ambedkar's 125th birth anniversary. The fake and untruthful Hindutva compassion for Dalits is... more

- by Shamsul Islam
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- Indian Politics, Sectarianism, Ambedkar Studies, Hindutva

Enhancing the environmental governance of multinational corporations is a major challenge in today's global economy. Various global corporate governance initiatives thus promote procedural justice and due diligence. Among those, the OECD Guidelines stand out for providing an extraterritorial grievance mechanism. However, when a transnational social movement uses this mechanism to challenge the environmental policies of a corporation in a given country, one wonders how the proceedings alter environmental governance on the field. This paper analyzes the impact of this mechanism by looking at a case where a coalition of French and Indian NGOs challenged the investment of a French multinational corporation in India. Drawing upon extensive field research in India and in France, we argue that the mechanism promotes procedural justice but faces structural hurdles which undermine its effectiveness: it fails to be institutionally independent from the government's economic ministry and cannot enhance environmental governance and sustainable development at the regional level in a context of state-led industrial and infrastructure development. 2

Reflections on the India-Pakistan summit over Kashmir

Book Review of Not War, Not Peace? Motivating Pakistan to Prevent Cross-Border Terrorism. By George Perkovich and Toby Dalton.

- by Aleksander Glogowski
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- Geography, Indian studies, Pakistan, China
- by Bibek Chand
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- South Asian Studies, Security Studies, Indian Politics, Pakistan Studies
- by Sanjib Baruah
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- South Asian Politics, Northeast India, Bangladesh, Indian Politics

Why does the state sometimes provide welfare and sometimes not? Why is it able to promote competition on some occasions and not others? We argue that a critical variable in this process is the way the state thinks. State capacity is also a product of the relationship between bureaucratic or technocratic elite and political will. We demonstrate this conjecture by exploring the political economy of welfare under the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPIM) in West Bengal. We empirically demonstrate that CPIM in West Ben-gal has shifted its ideology from welfare to trickle down. The paper argues for the salience of ideation within the state and the kinds of synergies that exist between the bureaucracy and the political class in the implementation of such policies. The failure of CPIM in West Bengal can be likened to a tipping point evident in the gradual evolution of trickle-down economics over redistribution as an ideology of governance.

- by Himanshu Jha
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- Welfare State, Indian Politics, Public Policy Analysis, Ideas

'KNOW THE RSS' is now available in Kannada, English, Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Malayalam, Gujarati, Punjabi, Marathi.

- by Shamsul Islam
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- Indian Politics, Women In Hinduism, Hindu nationalism, Hindutva

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and its affiliated groups - usually known as the "Sangh Parivar" - are the most powerful organisations in India today. But ask what they stand for, and you will get two very different answers. Critics of the RSS describe them as anti-secular, medieval and anti-democratic; but supporters of the organisation claim that it is a selfless social service group concerned only with genuine nationalism. Starting with the RSS' own texts, and exploring its history and the relationship between its beliefs and Indian politics, this book examines both of these claims. On this basis, it tries to answer two key questions: what do these groups actually stand for, and what does their rise mean for India's future?

- by Shankar Gopalakrishnan
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- Political Economy, Fascism, Gramsci, Indian Politics

The article examines the factors behind the expeditious rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Tripura, the tiny Northeastern State of India in which the party had a negligible presence since Tripura's emergence as a state. The paper highlights the party's political strategy in the state in successfully countering the strong left bastion at the height of its electoral presence for more than two decades. The paper however argues unlike other cases of mainland India, ideology was not a significant element in BJP's electoral success in the case of Tripura, and therefore its future success will depend upon a fine balancing act of managing its alliance as well as effective handling of the key socioeconomic determinants that lies at the heart of state politics.

- by Biplab Debnath
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- Indian studies, Communism, Indian Politics, Political Ideology
- by Rahul Mishra
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- International Relations, Southeast Asia, International Politics, Indian Politics

Even as its star rises, India is burdened with insurgency and internal violence. Its neighbourhood includes troubled states, such as Burma and Sri Lanka, where human rights violations have led to calls for outside intervention in the recent past. As a major regional power, India has a potentially important role in resolving crises and determining the effectiveness of international efforts to protect civilians. More generally, its leadership role in the developing world, growing power-political clout, and global ambition have placed its attitude towards the emerging norm of ‘responsibility to protect’ (R2P) under the spotlight. Military intervention to halt or prevent atrocities is one of the most contentious aspects of R2P, with which India has often expressed its vocal disagreement. Yet, closer examination of the country’s cumulative record reveals ambiguity and pragmatism. It also shows a willingness to acquiesce to, or rather tolerate, intervention under certain narrowly defined circumstances, as India has been nudged towards more active engagement with the new norm and adapted out of self-interest to the majority position. In the final analysis, however, India has remained a reactive rather than a proactive actor, one that has only very reluctantly and cautiously acknowledged ‘a’ responsibility to protect and that also continues to be genuinely concerned about the appropriateness of 'humanitarian intervention'. The paper opens with a historical overview of India’s affinity for the principles of sovereignty, non-intervention, and non-use of force. The second section looks at the factors that have shaped its stance towards humanitarian intervention in particular. In the third section, I focus on India’s response to selected cases of actual intervention in the 1990s. The fourth section examines India’s rhetoric in the public conversation after Kosovo on the principle of humanitarian intervention (under the broad rubric of R2P) at the UN, while touching lightly on the experiences that have informed its arguments ‘against’ the resort to force.

- by Kudrat Virk
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- International Relations, Human Rights, Indian studies, South Asian Studies

Out in January 2020 with Oxford University Press

- by Elizabeth Chatterjee
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- Political Economy, Development Studies, Welfare State, South Asian Studies
- by Sotiris G Vandoros
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- Political Sociology, Political Parties, Political Science, Federalism

Academic freedom is considered to be one of the most important pillars of educational institutions. It is a prerequisite for quality education, essential for complete development of human personality. However, it has been subjected to constant restraint from both governmental and non-governmental entities. Further, violation of academic freedom also leads to breach of other human rights.

- by Alex Coutinho
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- Academic Freedom, Human Rights, United Nations, Freedom Of Expression

India, which sustains its economic upturn in the 21st century, has great security concerns in its region. After the end of the Cold War, India decided to modernize its army equipped with Soviet-made old weapons. In this process, it has initiated both the Indigenous Arms Industry program and developed defense relations with the world's leading countries. India signed huge arms deals with Israel in 2000, which did not establish any diplomatic relations until 1992, taking into account the sensitivities of the Muslim population in its possession. This development, when assessed in the context of offensive realism, indicates that India can follow an aggressive attitude in an attempt to threaten its national security in the coming years.

- by Dr. Aabid Majeed Sheikh
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- Southeast Asian Studies, Israel Studies, Indian Politics

"Since ‘9/11’ and the global war on terrorism that followed, Muslim clerics and intellectuals in India have been under pressure from various quarters to publically denounce terrorism. This demand has come from media, political parties and fellow non-Muslim citizens. On 31May 2008, the leading Islamic Seminary Darul-Uloom Deoband (based in Uttar Pradesh) issued a public “Fatwa against terrorism” at a public rally of no less than 100,000 Islamic clerics in Delhi. This paper analyses the background to the declaration, the contents of the Fatwa by the Deobandis and the responses from the ruling Congress Party government, the right wing (Hindu fundamentalist) opposition BJP, the Delhi Police and also Muslim intellectuals."

- by Kamala Kanta Dash
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- Social Movements, Police Science, International Relations, Terrorism
- by Dr. Sanjay Kumar
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- Indian Politics

Every minute, at least one woman dies from pregnancy and childbirth complications; a further 20 suffer injury, infection or disease. Despite medical advances, and years of policy declarations, this tragic situation remains particularly severe in developing countries, violating a fundamental human right. Is a new approach possible, one that looks beyond common project paradigms and standards? What could such an approach look like, how might it operate, and what might be its effect?
The Women’s Health Initiative, an innovative public private partnership that drew reference from the UN Global Compact, provides a possible model.

- by Kanishka Kaur
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- Social Change, Media Studies, Film Studies, Indian studies
- by Piotr Kozłowski
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- Democratization, Democracy, Indian Politics
- by Sujata Ashwarya
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- Political Science, Cold War, Energy Security, Indian Politics
- by Michael Levien
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- History, International Relations, Political Economy, Development Studies

The Sangh Parivar has essentially merged the registers of Mandal and Mandir by way of creating a viable political block for themselves in Uttar Pradesh. Based on an ethnographic study of the Sangh Parivar in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh and through interviews and participant observation, the article examines the roles played by various elements of the Sangh Parivar in expanding the vote base of the party. First of all, the article analyzes how the Sangh Parivar uses the strategies of social engineering and politicization of diverse identities to attract communities who traditionally have not voted for the party. Secondly, it examines the Sangh Parivar’s abilities to respond to local factors and develop political alliances within constituencies with varied demographics without compromising its core principles. Lastly, the article documents how the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh functions like a corporation, with a committed workforce and clear division of responsibilities, and engages in electoral and political mobilization.

- by Avishek Jha
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- Indian Politics, Hindutva, Hindu Nationalism in Modern India, Uttar Pradesh
- by Alperen Morova
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- Comparative Politics, Indian Politics, Indian Parliament, Southeastern Asia

The pace of urbanisation in India and China has, of late, been rapid. This raises concerns over urban governance in both countries. While urban governance in India is supposed to take place according to the 74th Amendment to the Constitution, in China, it is largely led, guided, and experimented upon by the Chinese Communist Party. With these aspects in view, this article looks at the extent to which urban governments in these countries have been moving from traditional government to network governance. What are the roles of state, civil society, and markets in the emerging scenario of urban governance so defined? The task of moving towards 'governance' is incomplete in both countries. While urban governance and urban civil societies are weak in India, markets are strong; whereas, in China, the urban government is strong while markets and civil society are weak. There is still a long way for both countries to go towards networked governance in urban areas.

It is Marathi version of HINDUTVA: SAVARKAR UNMASKED.
Based on the documents of Hindu Mahasabha & RSS it shows the real face of 'Veer' Savarkar who betrayed the Freedom Struggle, formed coalition governments with the Muslim League in 1942, demanded promulgation of 'Manusmriti' as Indian constitution and supported the two-nation theory of Muslim League.
It is also available in English, Hindi, Malayalam, Kannada, Punjabi.

- by Shamsul Islam
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- Politics of Secularism, Caste and Untouchability, Indian Politics, Brahmanism

The 2012 CAG report on coal block allocation in India as well as the 2014 Supreme Cout judgement (which led to a cancellation of 214 coal blocks) lead to a complete revamp of the system by which coal blocks were given out to prospective owners. To avoid the discrepancy cultivated by the allocation process and in the interest of transparency the NDA government in 2014 formulated an ordinance (which later became a bill) to auction these blocks. This paper seeks to provide a clear understanding of the process by which coal blocks are auctioned as well as some problems which might arise due to the current process.

- by Swati Dsouza and +1
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- Energy Policy, Energy Security, Coal, Auctions