India under Prime Minister Modi has fast become an unabashedly majoritarian polity – and one that doesn’t shy away from confronting its own religious minorities over perceived ‘anti-national’ proclivities or smaller neighbours over perceived slights.
What distinguishes the Modi government from preceding administrations is its emphatic Hindu nationalistic stance and, above all, an attempt to transform the Westminster pattern of democracy into a personalised presidential-cum-CEO style of leadership – and the all the attendant knock-on effects that come along with such an endeavour. For a fair number of analysts and members of the general public, this may be a welcome departure from the previous UPA stewardship of the country. But in many ways, concentrating enormous power and onus for decision-making in one individual or a handful of individuals runs the risk of overlooking the nuances of policy-making.
Cover, India Now and in Transition
Title: India Now and in Transition Non-fiction/2017 Edited by Atul K. Thakur Published by: Niyogi Books 448pp Rs 595 (Hardback)
And given the size and regional influence of India, what happens in India doesn’t just stay in India.
And so, quite understandably, even citizens of neighbouring countries have been watching with baited breadth the rise of Modi. Diplomacy during the UPA government had been marked by political neglect and bureaucratic overreach in countries where India has outsized influence. Under Modi, the region has witnessed both: a warm embrace and harsh punitive actions. The long blockade imposed on Nepal – of over five months – is a case in point.
As India emerges as an important power bloc in a multipolar world, some reflection on its chequered history, diversity, neighbourhood policies and a myriad of others issues is much warranted. India Now and in Transition, edited by Atul K. Thakur, a journalist and public policy professional, brings together a collection of 37 essays in one volume. It seeks to offer some clear-sighted reflection on India’s numerous fault-lines.
The Maoist insurgency in India remains a symbol of the unresolved fault-lines and injustices in South Asia
As the Modi-led BJP party seeks to redefine and reposition India – vis-à-vis both citizens and the international community – a clear grasp of the country’s many manifest and latent conflicts is quite indispensable. This book, in essence, is a guide to an effective but do-no-harm approach to policymaking in a country as humongous and as complex as India.
By laying out the context and trajectories of potentially millions of mutinies, this book should find favour amongst scholars, leaders and policymakers.
A central and unifiying theme to the essays in the book is that in the complex and multi-layered tapestry that today’s Indian society is, majoritarian hubris can do irreversible damage to the fabric. The book outlines a number of reasons for tempering those instincts.
A central and unifiying theme to the essays in the book is that in the complex and multi-layered tapestry that today's Indian society is, majoritarian hubris can do irreversible damage to the fabric
The book is neatly divided into five thematic areas covering politics and governance – Economics and Development; Security and Foreign Policy; Society and Culture; and Language and Literature. While it can indeed offer broad-stroke depictions of the challenges and opportunities in each of these spheres facing India and Indian rulers, one would need to do an in-depth reading from other sources for a complete account of the fault-lines. Nevertheless, the range of topics that the book sets out to cover in one volume is quite ambitious.
And so, for instance, the book touches on the issue of Kashmir and the Northeast, evolving relations between Centre and the State, land reform, corruption, human rights, judicial reform, economic and human development, economic reforms, black money, Indian Strategy, Naxalism, security challenges, diplomacy, neighborhood policies, media, film, censorship, sports, environmentalism, and Indian literature – amongst other topics.
The first essay by Ramachandra Guha on the debate over the ‘Greatest Indians’ generally sets the tone for the whole book. Guha brilliantly portrays the battle over perceptions as well as the attempt to rewrite history. If there is no agreement over who the greatest Indians were, a consensus over other aspects of national life is hard to come by.
The Modi administration has sought to remake India in a Hindu nationalist image
Of course the battle over reshaping the national narrative is not unique to India. Forget developing countries, a majority of developed western countries are currently undergoing a similar attempt to redefine the very character of their national polity. The rise of nativist, white-supremacist exclusionary groups and parties has sharply divided these countries into the camps of liberal globalists and right-wing nationalists.
Coming from Nepal, I can relate to most issues covered in this book. From a debate over shaping the national narrative to issues of inclusion, evolving center-state relations under federalism, governance and security challenges, the book could just as easily have been about Nepal. The similarities and parallels in the issues and contexts it examines make this book a useful read for readers in the South Asian region as a whole.
The approach adopted by editor Atul K. Thakur in putting together this impressive compendium is something that could be emulated for other countries – if no similar body of work exists.
The grievances of Indians from the northeast have, at times, resulted in insurgency
The battle over reshaping the national narrative is not unique to India
Coming back to India, while the prospect of this vast country becoming a vibrant democracy – one that is not just a playground for the rich, middle class and the well-connected but equally provides a level-playing field for the nearly 300 million poor – is certainly not beyond the realm of possibility, the challenges are no less Herculean to overcome. This book can be a useful aid in how to make the Modi administration’s slogan of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas’ a reality.
India Now and in Transition is, in short, an important backgrounder for how not to accidentally unleash a million mutinies whilst you are engaged policymaking in India!
John Narayan Parajuli is a Kathmandu-based journalist and public policy analyst. Formerly he has worked with the Kathmandu Post and the United Nations. He may be reached at: john.parajuli@gmail.com
