Indian Federalism and Democracy

The Growing Salience of Diversity-claims Over Equality-claims in Comparative and Indian Perspective

Bibliographic Data

ID12575490
AuthorsHarihar Bhattacharyya (University of Burdwan, corresponding author)
Year2015
Volume25
Issue3
Pages211-227
Publication date2015-05-27
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueRegional & Federal Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1359-7566 • E-ISSN: 1743-9434
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/13597566.2015.1052965
OpenAlexW1595034411
LanguageEN
Citations received8
References cited30

This article introduces a conceptual distinction between diversity-claims and equality-claims in order to reflect critically on the relation between federalism and democracy in India, which is not adequately problematized and somewhat neglected. Federalism and democracy suggest two different problematics, but in India democracy has often played second fiddle to the claims of diversity. As a result, India's success as a federation has not been paralleled by its record as a democracy in terms of its equality functions. Since the article engages with the issue of accommodation of diversity in the wake of federation-building, and the relation between federalism and democracy, critical references are made to the relevant theoretical literature in order to point out federalism's new problematic and its pitfalls. With the Indian case as a major illustration, it is shown here that the institutional arrangements and governing practices have overwhelmingly been given priority to meet the claims of diversity to the relative neglect of equality-claims

Democracy · Diversity (politics · Federalism · Law and economics · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Salience (neuroscience · Sociology · Law · Social and Economic Development in India · South Asian Studies and Conflicts · South Asian Studies and Diaspora

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