Politicisation of Caste Relations in a Princely State: Communal Politics in Modern Travencore (1891-1947) Among the various factors that contributed for the progressive transformation of Kerala into a modern democratic society, politicization of caste played a very crucial role. Travancore which formed part of present day Kerala before integration witnessed socio-political movements in the modern period initiated by the principal communities. The net result of these movements was the transformation of pyramidal social structure into pillar social structure. It was achieved through incessant conflicts and assertions and from the position of caste victims some communities could elevate themselves to the makers of their own destinies. They transformed the society from change resistant sacred outlook to change ready secular outlook. The shift of this change was from caste hierarchical structure to inter-personal relations. In Modern Travancore social movement through protest aimed not only social change but also change in political sphere. The caste played a crucial role in the transformation of traditional society into modern society. In the traditional society the status of an individual was fixed. Children learn to act according to the established norms and deviations are punished. But with the influence of modern ideas the younger generations tend to become dissatisfied with the traditional society and readily accepted the new values. These values reflected the caste relations as well. In the changed situation the dominant caste groups played a catalytic role in social change. S.N.D.P and the Sree Narayana movement was a typical movement which experimented all these way of struggle. Political participation of the community can be seen in the movements like Malayali memorial agitation, Ezhava memorial, Civic Rights movement, Nivarthana agitation and struggle for responsible government. Conversion movement was effectively executed through actual conversion and the threat of conversion. The present work aims to unravel the phases of transformation of Modern Travancore into a democratic society through the politicization of caste relations.

When thinking of India, it is hard not to think of caste. In academic and common parlance alike, caste has become a central symbol for India, marking it as fundamentally different from other places while expressing its essence. Nicholas Dirks argues that caste is, in fact, neither an unchanged survival of ancient India nor a single system that reflects a core cultural value. Rather than a basic expression of Indian tradition, caste is a modern phenomenon--the product of a concrete historical encounter between India and British colonial rule. Dirks does not contend that caste was invented by the British. But under British domination caste did become a single term capable of naming and above all subsuming India's diverse forms of social identity and organization. Dirks traces the career of caste from the medieval kingdoms of southern India to the textual traces of early colonial archives; from the commentaries of an eighteenth-century Jesuit to the enumerative obsessions of the late-nineteenth-century census; from the ethnographic writings of colonial administrators to those of twentieth-century Indian scholars seeking to rescue ethnography from its colonial legacy. The book also surveys the rise of caste politics in the twentieth century, focusing in particular on the emergence of caste-based movements that have threatened nationalist consensus. Castes of Mind is an ambitious book, written by an accomplished scholar with a rare mastery of centuries of Indian history and anthropology. It uses the idea of caste as the basis for a magisterial history of modern India. And in making a powerful case that the colonial past continues to haunt the Indian present, it makes an important contribution to current postcolonial theory and scholarship on contemporary Indian politics.

In recent decades, India has been witness to the assertion of geographically, culturally and historically constituted distinct and well-defined regions that display ethnic, communal, caste and other social–political cleavages. This book examines the changing configurations of state politics in India. Focussing on identity politics and development, it explores the specificities of the regions within states — not merely as politico-administrative constructs but also as conceived in historical, geographic, economic, sociological or cultural terms. Adopting a comparative approach, the book looks at alternative theoretical approaches — the quest for homeland, identity, caste politics and public policy. This second edition includes a new Introduction that updates the research in the area, while further developing the theoretical framework. One of the first major volumes on federalism in India, including studies from across the nation, this book will be indispensable for students and scholars of political science, sociology, history and South Asian studies.

This book examines the politics of social, cultural and political recognition of caste groups in North India. It explores the factors that make some castes politically influential, while others continue to remain socially and economically marginalized. The author situates these groups within democracy and utilizes a multicultural framework to understand why and when various castes have sought to achieve recognition and redistributive justice; to what extent different castes have been able to achieve these goals; and how civil society has engaged with these issues. Unlike dominant discourses on caste and democracy, which give primacy to electoral/procedural democracy over the substantive one, this book views the relationship between castes and the state in both dimensions of democracy. An important addition to the study of caste politics in India, the volume will be of great interest to scholars and researchers of social exclusion, development studies, minority studies, sociology and social policy, politics, and South Asian studies. It will also be of importance to politicians, policy makers, and civil society activists.

This book offers a fresh approach to the study of religion in modern South Asia. It uses a series of case studies to explore the development of religious ideas and practices, giving students an understanding of the social, political and historical context.

"A powerful book on caste, a subject that has dramatic importance not only for the history of democracy in modern India, but for the general discussion on the interferences of social inequalities and cultural exclusions. The Caste Question goes beyond the usual antitheses of localism and globalism, and illustrates a decisive notion of intensive universality."—Etienne Balibar "A sustained and probing analysis of the modern history of caste in Western India, connecting issues of gender, personhood, property, and politics to facts of oppression and inequality. This is the most politically and theoretically engaged book on caste to have come out in a long time."—Dipesh Chakrabarty, author of Habitations of Modernity "A profound reflection, at once historically rich and theoretically nuanced, on the nature of political modernity itself."—John Comaroff, co-author (with Jean Comaroff) of Of Revelation and Revolution "Rao is entirely convincing in this brilliant and audacious re-evaluation of political modernity in India through the perspective of anti-caste struggles."—Mrinalini Sinha, author of Specters of Mother India: The Global Re-Structuring of an Empire

A comprehensive and up-to-date study of the major political, cultural and economic changes in India during the past 45 years.

India’s Princely States covered nearly 40 per cent of the Indian subcontinent at the time of Indian independence, and they collapsed after the departure of the British. This book provides a chronological analysis of the Princely State in colonial times and its post-colonial legacies. Focusing on one of the largest and most important of these states, the Princely State of Mysore, it offers a novel interpretation and thorough investigation of the relationship of king and subject in South Asia. The book argues that the denial of political and economic power to the king, especially after 1831 when direct British control was imposed over the state administration in Mysore, was paralleled by a counter-balancing multiplication of kingly ritual, rites, and social duties. The book looks at how, at the very time when kingly authority was lacking income and powers of patronage, its local sources of power and social roots were being reinforced and rebuilt in a variety of ways. Using a combination of historical and anthropological methodologies, and based upon substantial archival and field research, the book argues that the idea of kingship lived on in South India and continues to play a vital and important role in contemporary South Indian social and political life. The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.

4. King vs. Parliament: Democratization in Nepal

Following independence, the Nehruvian approach to socialism in India rested on three pillars: secularism and democracy in the political domain, state intervention in the economy, and diplomatic non-alignment mitigated by pro-Soviet leanings after the 1960s. These features defined a distinct "Indian model," if not the country's political identity. From this starting point, Christophe Jaffrelot traces the transformation of India throughout the latter half of the twentieth century, particularly the 1980s and 90s. The world's largest democracy has sustained itself by embracing not only the vernacular politicians of linguistic states, but also Dalits and "Other Backward Classes," or OBCs. The simultaneous--and related--rise of Hindu nationalism has put minorities--and secularism--on the defensive. In many ways the rule of law has been placed on trial as well. The liberalization of the economy has resulted in growth, yet not necessarily development, and India has acquired a new global status, becoming an emerging power intent on political and economic partnerships with Asia and the West. The traditional Nehruvian system is giving way to a less cohesive though more active India, a country that has become what it is against all odds. Jaffrelot maps this tumultuous journey, exploring the role of religion, caste, and politics in determining the fabric of a modern democratic state.