Political History of India Since Independence

Course Type	Course Code	No. Of Credits
Foundation Elective	NSLG1LP119	4

Semester and Year Offered : Winter Semester

Course Coordinator and Team : Anushka Singh

Email of the coarse coordinator : anushka[at]aud[dot]ac[dot]in

Pre-requisites: None

Does the course connect to, build on or overlap with any other courses offered in AUD?

This will be a Second semester course for students of BA Prog. (Law and Politics) and would serve as the foundation for courses to follow on various aspects of law and politics in India. The course is being imagined as an intervening course between the models of transaction in school and college education and would allow students to pick up skills of academic engagement and familiarity with scholarly material.

Specific requirements on the part of students who can be admitted to this course: None
No. of students to be admitted (with justification if lower than usual cohort size is proposed): As per AUD regulations Semester long, BA Second Semester
Course scheduling: (summer/winter course; semester-long course; half-semester course; workshop mode; seminar mode; any other – please specify) Semester-long course
Proposed date of launch: August 2023

How does the course link with the vision of AUD and the specific programme(s) where it is being offered?

The course is a historical survey of the evolution of democracy in India and how Indian politics has shaped around concerns of democracy, a question which sits at the heart of the vision of this university. SLGC is an interdisciplinary school and the BA Programme is located at the intersection of the disciplines of Law and Political Science. This course, in introducing the socio-political-legal history of independent India to students, sets the premise for intellectual engagement on themes of interdisciplinarity to follow.

Course Details:

Summary:What does it mean to characterize India as a democracy with a legacy of over 75 years? A nation which was born out of partition with a promise of secularism, equality and justice, where the nature of state sought to transcend its colonial antecedent to embrace a democratic-republican form, with the promise to vest sovereignty in its people, has lived through different times and spaces and persevered to keep the vision of the foundation moment alive. The three quarters of a century of Indian democracy is the story of consensus and contradictions, transitions and persistence, movements and laws, state and the people. These stories form the political history of independent India. The gaze on contemporary politics is often clouded by the imminence of the challenges at hand, resulting in the approach to be myopic. This course is designed in a macro perspective, with the intention to take the students through the journey of the evolution of Indian democracy and help them understand how we have arrived where we have. Being a first semester course, it takes on the burden of surveying the vast field of Indian politics since independence, through an overview with later courses being allowed the leeway to sink into the depths of the issues raised here. Though it is a survey course, it does not confine itself to chronicling the decade wise evolution of Indian politics, instead culls out thematic that emerge as democracy in India matures. Each of the modules represent those themes which deepen the understanding of what politics and democracy in India has meant with the passage of time.

Objectives

To develop in the students an understanding of the political history of India since independence
To help students critically analyse the various aspects of Indian democracy and its changing nature
To deepen the discussion on contemporary politics with an understanding of the evolutionary past

Expected Learning Outcomes

On the successful completion of the course students would demonstrate

a knowledge of the evolution of democracy in India
an understanding of the key events, issues, developments which have shaped the course of democracy and politics in India
analytical skills to assess the nature and the working of political instructions, movements, political parties etc. in India

Overall structure

Module 1: An overview (2 weeks)

The introductory module will provide a bird’s-eye view of the decade wise evolution of Indian politics. The purpose of the module is field mapping and to plot the key developments which have shaped the nature of Indian politics and democracy. An understanding of the events which unfold will be juxtaposed with the constitutional vision at the foundation moment to view these developments as stemming from a base, which in turn will help them understand the relationship between the base and the stem. The understanding of the chronicle is important for a thematic engagement with the field. Through the chronicling, it will introduce the students to the theoretical frameworks within which the developments can be located and understood, such as popular sovereignty, forms of equality, secularism, identity politics, development discourse, etc.

Readings:

Enter the debates at the founding moment with Nehru’s ‘Tryst with Destiny’ and Ambedkar’s ‘Era of Contradiction’
Rajeev Bhargava, 2022, Why Have Faith in the Great Indian Experiment?, in Between Hope And Despair, Bloomsbury
Mohinder Singh, 2023, Perceptions of Colonialism, in G N Devy et al The Indians, Histories of a Civilization, Aleph.
Pradip Datta, 2023, Interaction with Colonial Ideas, in G N Devy et al The Indians, Histories of a Civilization, Aleph.
Paul Brass, 1994, Introduction: Continuities and Discontinuities between Pre- and Post-Independence India, in The Politics of Indian Since Independence, Cambridge University Press.
Atul Kohli and Prerna Singh, 2016, Introduction: Politics in India—an overview, Kohli and Singh eds, Routledge Handbook Of Indian Politics, Routledge.

Module 2: The post-colonial State and its promises (3 weeks)

The post-colonial state in India structurally was a replication of the European modern state, a variant of which was also the colonial state, but in character transcended the colonial model. It was composed of competing logics of colonial continuities and radical departures. The liberal promises of the Constitution restricted the powers of the state, and the transformative vision of the Constitution empowered the state. Between the different logics, the post-colonial state adorned many avatars- liberal, developmental, transformative, welfarist, interventionist, regulatory, coercive. This module explores the idea of the post-colonial state, envisaged in the immediate socio-political setting in which it was born, and the nature of state in India which evolved in the post-foundation moment with its shifting visages and how each of them informed the relationship between state and democracy.

Readings

Sugata bose, 2023, The Partition of India, in G N Devy et al The Indians, Histories of a Civilization, Aleph.
Bipan Chandra, Aditya Mukherjee, & Mridula Mukherjee, 2008, The Initial Years, in India Since Independence. New Delhi: Penguin.
Madhav Khosla and M. Vaishnav, 2021, ‘The Three Faces of the Indian State’, Journal of Democracy, 32(1).
M. Mohanty, (1989) ‘Duality of the State Process in India: A Hypothesis’, Bhartiya Samajik Chintan, Vol. XII
Y. Yadav, 2020, On Theories of the Indian State, in Making Sense of Indian Democracy, Permanent Black
Rajni Kothari, 2005, Democracy and the Role of the State, in Rethinking Democracy, Orient Longman.
Devesh Kapur and Pratap Bhanu Mehta eds., 2005, Introduction, in Public Institutions in India, Oxford University Press

Module 3: Democracy and National Integration (3 weeks)

Democracy and national integration were imagined as coterminous by the Constituent assembly. It meant that the trajectory of Indian politics must shape in a manner that it allows relative exercise of autonomy and freedom to its constituents while upholding the unity of the nation that India was imagined to me. This delicate balance was reflected both in the constitutional structure, for instance, the model of federalism making centralism permissible alongside asymmetrical rights to specific geographies, and the Janus-faced nature of political processes in dealing with the challenges to nation-building, regional aspirations and democratic rights movements. This module explores what it has meant to harmonize the imperative of democracy with the obligation of national integrity, and how harmonious the journey has been.

Readings:

Sunil Khilnani, 1997, Democracy, in The Idea of India (2023 edition), Penguin
Rajeev Bhargava Ch 8 and 9
Ramchandra Guha, 2007, Redrawing the Map, in India After Gandhi, Macmillan.
Bipan Chandra, Aditya Mukherjee, & Mridula Mukherjee, 2008, Consolidation of India as a Nation (CH 7), in India Since Independence. New Delhi: Penguin.
Ramchandra Guha, 2007, The Logic of Division, in India After Gandhi, Macmillan.
Bipan Chandra, Aditya Mukherjee, & Mridula Mukherjee, 2008, Consolidation of India as a Nation: Linguistic reorganization, in India Since Independence. New Delhi: Penguin.
Paul Brass, 1994, Crises of national unity, in The Politics of Indian Since Independence, Cambridge University Press.
Paul Staniland, 2016, Insurgencies in India, in Kohli and Singh eds, Routledge Handbook Of Indian Politics, Routledge.
Suhas Palshikar, Ch 8, Regional and Caste Parties, in Atul Kohli ed, Routledge Handbook.
Bipan Chandra, Aditya Mukherjee, & Mridula Mukherjee, 2008, Consolidation of India as a Nation: Regionalism and Regional Inequality, in India Since Independence. New Delhi: Penguin.
Suhas Palshikar, 2017, Regional Mobilizations, in Indian Democracy, Oxford India Short Introductions, OUP.
Gyan Prakash, 2019, Prologue, in Emergency Chronicles: Indira Gandhi and Democracy's Turning Point, Princeton University Press
Gyan Prakash, 2019, Lawful Suspension of Law, in Emergency Chronicles: Indira Gandhi and Democracy's Turning Point, Princeton University Press
G. Haragopal, and K. Balagopal, 1998, Civil Liberties Movement and the State in India, in M. Mohanty, P. Mukherji and O. Tornquist eds., People’s Rights: Social Movements and the State in Third World, Sage
Ramchandra Guha, Ch 22, Autumn of Matriarch, in India After Gandhi

Module 4: Beyond Political Equality: Social Revolutions and Secularism (3 weeks)

The vision of the Constitution was transformative, primarily because the declaration about the ‘India’ which the Constitution made did not exist, instead had to be created. Dr. Ambedkar referred to the foundation moment as a State of Contradiction where political equality had been achieved with independence and universal adult franchise, but social and economic inequalities persisted. Bringing about socio-economic parity was nothing less than a revolution of sorts. The module delves into a study of the unfolding of this revolution and explores the different modes through which power is exercised and dispersed in society along different social identities. The revolution, far from complete, has been a complex interaction of state action and societal impulses bringing about a democratic churning. The module explores how the democratic churning has informed and conditioned the nature of state and institutional politics in India.

Readings

Amita Baviskar, 2010, Social Movements, in Niraja Gopal Jayal and Pratap Bhanu Mehta (eds), The Oxford Companion to Politics in India, Oxford University Press
Krishna Menon, 2023, People’s Movement Since Independence, in G N Devy et al The Indians, Histories of a Civilization, Aleph.
Rajeev Bhargava, 2022, Our Religious and Secular Ideals, in Between Hope And Despair, Bloomsbury
Sunil Khilnani, 1997, Who is an Indian, in The Idea of India (2023 edition), Penguin
Neera Chandhoke, 2019, Secularism Under Siege, in Niraja Jaya led, Re-forming India, Penguin.
Ramchandra Guha, 2007, Rights, in India After Gandhi, Macmillan.
Bipan Chandra, Aditya Mukherjee, & Mridula Mukherjee, 2008, Caste, Untouchability, Anti-caste Politics and Strategies , in India Since Independence. New Delhi: Penguin.
Rinku Lamba, 2023, Caste and Reforms, in G N Devy et al The Indians, Histories of a Civilization, Aleph.
Aditya Nigam, 2023, Identity Politics Since Independence, in G N Devy et al The Indians, Histories of a Civilization, Aleph.
Gail Omvedt, 2012, The Anti-caste Movement and the Discourse of Power, in Niraja Jayal ed., Democracy in India, Oxford
Christophe Jaffrelot, 2016, Caste and political parties in India: Do Indians vote their caste—while casting their vote? in Kohli and Singh eds, Routledge Handbook Of Indian Politics, Routledge.

Module 5: Political Economy of Development (2 weeks)

The development discourse in India has undergone paradigmatic shifts. This module traces the shifting contours of economic development and planning in India and its relationship to the vision of economic democracy and equality in the Constitution. The planned model of economy with thrust on state directed development for many decades after the independence, involved a vision of economic transformation with a social imperative. In the course of rapid industrialization, large scale public ownership, land acquisition and redistribution, and later with capitalist expansion, liberalization, and privatization, the model of economic development has been a story of both social enfranchisement and disenfranchisement. While the state and capital have been the drivers of change, the affected social groups have persisted with their demands both successfully and unsuccessfully.

Readings

Sunny Kumar, 2023, (CH 76) The Impact of Colonial Rule on Indian Economy, in G N Devy et al The Indians, Histories of a Civilization, Aleph.
Bipan Chandra, Aditya Mukherjee, & Mridula Mukherjee, 2008, (CH 36) The Post-Colonial Indian State and the Political Economy of Development: An Overview, in India Since Independence. New Delhi: Penguin.
Paul Brass, 1994, Politics, Economic Development, And Social Change , in The Politics of Indian Since Independence, Cambridge University Press.
Kumar Ketkar, 2023, (CH 101) India Since Liberalization, in G N Devy et al The Indians, Histories of a Civilization, Aleph.
Sunil Khilnani, 1997, Temples of the Future, in The Idea of India (2023 edition), Penguin
Devesh Kapur, 2010, The Political Economy of the State, in Niraja Gopal Jayal and Pratap Bhanu Mehta (eds), The Oxford Companion to Politics in India, Oxford University Press

Pedagogy:

Instructional design

The course will be a transacted through lectures and thematic discussions. Each module will be introduced through a set of essential readings, complimented by secondary readings, documentaries, archival material, etc. Student presentations on thematic discussions will ensure involvement.
Special needs (facilities, requirements in terms of software, studio, lab, clinic, library, classroom/others instructional space; any other – please specify) None
Expertise in AUD faculty or outside The faculty members at SLGC with training in both law and Political Science are well equipped to teach the course
Linkages with external agencies (e.g., with field-based organizations, hospital; any others)
Given the number of cohort size an attempt would be made to contact the Parliament museum for an education tour