From the Margins to the Mainstream
Institutionalising Minorities in South Asia
- Hugo Gorringe - Senior Lecturer in Sociology, University of Edinburgh, UK
- Roger Jeffery - Professor of Sociology of South Asia, University of Edinburgh
- Suryakant Waghmore - Associate Professor and Chairperson, Centre for Social Justice and Governance, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai
Leadership in Political Science
A brilliant analysis of the socio-political processes that help us understand the challenges faced by marginalized populations for representation and recognition in India.
The premise of democratic politics is that all citizens are equal and have an equal right to a say in national politics. This definition of democracy, however, is observed far more in the breach than in practice. Muslims, Dalits and Adivasis continue their struggle to seek entry into the institution from which they seem to be barred. Drawing on in-depth case studies the book explores how marginalized groups that achieve a degree of political inclusion often discover that it amounts to ‘adverse incorporation’ which is disempowering because it requires them to moderate or abandon key demands. The book is a unique work on the irony of ‘institutionalization’.
An interesting collection of research papers. The book, on the one hand, portrays the desperate endeavor of the underprivileged sections to come out of the shadow of caste…. the book is optimistic about the future of India. Despite ethnic and cultural fragmentations and low economic development, India has to some extent, unlike Pakistan and Sri Lanka, succeeded in implementing inclusive policies.
This anthology provides insights on the intracacies involved in the struggles on of marginalized communities, most of which lured by political recognition lose their stream and are appropriated by mainstream parties…the essays in this volume rightly point out that mere political inclusion without enhancement of capabilities serves little purpose in the metamorphosis of the disadvantaged communities.
The volume under review opens up this labyrinthine terrain for interrogation in assuming ‘institutionalization as a contested process rather than a simple transition’…. This volume is an important contribution to an area that needs rather fresh research into the complexities of institutionalization.