POL3431: Politics of India

The course introduces students to the politics of India; a non-Western, parliamentary political system that stands out as a bastion of democracy in the developing world, despite underdevelopment & significant ethno-religious divisions. By focusing on India, we offer an understanding of the problems of democratization, underdevelopment, governance & political violence. We examine India’s political institutions & challenges confronting the institutions such as socio-economic inequalities, social exclusion, social divisions, ethno-religious & ideological insurgencies, criminalization of politics & rampant corruption. The course enables students to answer important questions: Why did democracy endure in post-colonial India when much of the developing world endured authoritarian regimes? What accounts for the persistence of ethno-religious conflict & violence? What determines a country’s approach to socio-economic development? What accounts for India’s economic development over the last few decades? How do we explain the existence of political democracy and rampant corruption?

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