Introduction to the Politics of India
Lectures: (Date, Time, Place) Emmanuel J. Teitelbaum
Doctoral Candidate Department of Government Cornell University ejt5@cornell.edu India is the world’s largest democracy. It is home to over 1 billion people, approximately one-sixth of the world’s population. It is a country of great diversity, vast inequalities and extreme deprivations. This course will explore the manner in which this diversity, inequality, and deprivation serve as sources of political mobilization and political divisiveness. The course centers around one fundamental question: why has extreme material deprivation, in and of itself, not served as a major source of mobilization and unity among India’s poor? The first weeks of the course will focus on poverty and inequality and examine the extent to which classbased mobilization has occurred in India. In the remainder of the course, we will explore the many different bases of political mobilization in India including caste, ethnicity, agrarian identity, tribal identity, and regionalism. Requirements 1) Two exams (30% each) 2) Final paper (30%) 3) Informational quiz (5%) 4) Class Participation (5%) Required Reading Students will read approximately 100 pages per week and are required to attend two films. Readings will be provided in a course pack available for purchase at the campus bookstore. Week 1: India and its Political System, Nuts and Bolts Reading: Atul Kolhi, “India,” in Comparative Politics at the Crossroads. Week 2: A Look at Poverty and Inequality in India I--Bombay Reading: Kalpana Sharma, Rediscovering Dharavi, selected chapters.
Sujata Patel, Bombay: Metaphor for Modern India, selected chapters.
Movie, Salaam Bombay Week 3: A Look at Poverty and Inequality in India II—Perspectives and Realities Reading: Myron Weiner, The Child and the State in India, selected chapters. India Today, “How Indian Families Live: Amazing Findings from the Latest Census” Quiz on “Nuts and Bolts” at beginning of the week.
Week 4: An Overview of Indian Politics Reading: Pradeep Chibber, Democracy Without Associations, selected chapters. Atul Kohli, Democracy and Discontent, selected chapters. Week 5: Potatoes in a Sack—Working Class Mobilization and its Contradictions Reading: Patrick Heller, The Labour of Development, selected chapters. Rudolph and Rudolph, In Pursuit of Lakshmi, Chapter 10 Week 6: Caste and Caste-based Mobilization Reading: Christophe Jaffrelot, India’s Silent Revolution, selected chapters. Myron Weiner, “The struggle for equality: caste in Indian politics.” Movie: The Bandit Queen Weeks 7: Communalism and the Politics of Hindutva, part I Reading: Ashutosh Varshney, Ethnic Conflict and Civic Life, selected chapters Week 8: Communalism and the Politics of Hindutva, part II Reading: Tomas Blom Hansen, The Saffron Wave, selected chapters. Tomas Blom Hansen, Wages of Violence, selected chapters. Week 9: Agrarian Mobilization and Urban-Rural Struggles Reading: Ashutosh Varshney, Democracy, Development and the Countryside, selected chapters. Week 10: Tribal Politics Reading: Amita Baviskar, In The Belly of the River, selected chapters. Week 11: Regional Politics and Separatist Movements Reading: James Manor, “Center-state Relations” Atul Kohli, “Can Democracies Accommodate Ethnic Nationalism?” Week 12: North versus South Reading: Jean Dreze and Amartya Sen, Indian Development: Selected Regional Perspectives, selected chapters. Week 13: India in Comparative Perspective—A Tiger and a Dragon Reading: Jean Dreze and Amartya Sen, India: Economic Development and Social Opportunity, selected chapters. The Economist, India versus China Issue