Perspectives on Contemporary India

Dates: 16-17 April 2015

Convenor: Prof. Pralay Kanungo, ICCR Chair for the Study of Contemporary India at IIAS / Leiden University

The 21st Century India has been experiencing fundamental changes in society, politics, economy and culture. Intertwining of modernity and tradition has produced complex social relations. Though villages are ‘vanishing’ giving way to the ever expanding urban landscape, yet village India carries its resonance to the urban India. Legitimacy and rationale of old social identities based on caste, tribe and community are challenged and reconfigured after negotiations and confrontations.

Indian polity has also been passing through many twists and turns. The success of democracy has been India’s landmark achievement in the postcolonial world. Though some may dismiss it as merely procedural, this in a way has been a serious exercise and movement towards substantive democracy. Nehruvian ideas became the guiding philosophy of independent India and the Congress monopolised state power. Though the Congress lost its monopoly after a prolonged stay, and was later evicted from New Delhi on a few occasions, by and large it retained its political primacy through political alliances. However, the sixteenth Parliamentary elections has given a severe body blow to the Congress and changed the whole text and context of Indian politics.

After experimenting with identity politics for a few decades, either perhaps getting disillusioned or being motivated to try out a new experiment, the electorate has decided to choose a single political party under a strong leader hoping for a new direction. Under the new regime, the fundamentals of governance based on Nehruvian ideas are being seriously interrogated and institutions are replaced/overhauled. Narendra Modi is impatient to introduce new ideas and practices into nation’s code of governance. Critics see this as an attack on the ‘Idea of India’—the triumph of majoritarianism. No idea is beyond scrutiny. Only a serious dispassionate analysis could take us beyond the binary.

Diversity has been India’s pillar of strength—a rare nation where multiple religions, castes, communities, cultures and languages live together. Despite having a Hindu majority, it consciously became a secular state and guaranteed fundamental rights to citizens including different religious and linguistic minority groups. These rights have sustained Indian democracy. Any violation of such rights and any kind of discrimination is regularly scrutinized by an alert civil society and a fearless media. The size of the media has become enormous and the role it plays in the protection and enrichment of Indian democracy has been commendable. At the same time, the media-corporate nexus has been a big concern for democracy. On civil society front, a promising new political party(AAP), coming out of the womb of civil society movement, soon lost its direction resulting in a huge setback to civil society activism.

In the midst of these political changes, Indian economy has achieved high rate of growth leaving the so-called ‘Hindu rate of growth’ far behind. The world is keen to engage with India due to its rising economic status. While high growth has certainly uplifted standard of living, brought fortunes to many, and placed India on the focus of global imagination, the economic and social disparity it has generated questions the very moral basis and sustainability of this economic model. India has been struggling hard to find innovative ways to balance growth with equity. Moreover, the marginalised communities like the Dalits and the Adivasis demand development with dignity. The model of development has also seen rapid urbanisation, indiscriminate exploitation of natural resources and environmental degradation, threatening its very sustainability.

In this context, the IIAS seminar will interrogate these questions to comprehend multiple and contesting perspectives on Contemporary India.

Scholars from India and Europe, who have been seriously engaged in research and writing on these issues, have been invited to this conference to make their presentations. Please find below the program. Lunch and dinner will be provided for the speakers only. It is possible to have lunch in the museum cafe or in several places nearby. There is no registration fee to attend the seminar.

The seminar is co-sponsored by the Asian, Modernities and Traditions Research Profile at Leiden University; Leiden University Institute for Area Studies; and the Leiden University Fund / Van Steeden Fund.

Registration

We regret to inform you that we have reached the venue capacity. Registration is no longer possible. For questions, please contact Ms Martina van den Haak, m.c.van.den.haak@iias.nl

Inline photo © Vijay Bihani