India and the Politics of Developing Countries: Essays in Memory of Myron Weiner (First Edition)

By: Ashutosh Varshney

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Synopsis: `The essays in this volume will be welcomed by many political scientists as well as more lay observers of the Indian political situation. It is a welcome addition to our understanding of the evolution of political forces in independent India and deserves serious reading′ - Australian Journal of Political Science The baffling complexity of Indian politics has engaged the attention of many a political scientist. It has also led some to remark on its exceptional nature. Several key insights into the dynamics of Indian politics have been possible because of attempts at theoretical formulations and comparison with other developing countries. These methods served as the foundation for Myron Weiner`s engagement with India. His formidable intellectual acuity was solidly grounded in methodological clarity—a feature that also informs the essays in this volume. This important volume brings together renowned scholars who take Myron Weiner`s original, pioneering and often surprising insights into a wide range of themes—democratization, party politics, pressure groups, federalism, caste, identity politics and ethnic conflict, affirmative action, public policy, and political economy—as their starting point to arrive at conclusions that validate or extend Weiner`s works. Divided into three parts—Party Politics and Democracy, Ethnic Politics, and Political Economy—the essays in the book critique conventional wisdom and some well-known theoretical positions.