India as a ‘crypto-ethnic democracy’: the dynamics of ‘control’ in relation to peripheral ethnic minorities

Jugdep S. Chima

Third World Quarterly, 2021, vol. 42, issue 12, 2822-2840

Abstract: What type of democracy is multi-ethnic India, and how has it maintained territorial unity since Independence? I argue that India is best coded as a ‘crypto-ethnic democracy’, in contrast to traditional ‘consensual’ and ‘consociational’ interpretations, specifically in relation to its peripheral religious/ethnic minority groups. This argument is demonstrated through three interrelated themes: (1) nation/state-building, legitimating ideology and nationality construction; (2) ethnofederalism, regional political parties and ethnic peace accords; and (3) national security legislation, human rights and state-sponsored pogroms. The new conceptual formulation of ‘crypto-ethnic democracy’ integrates ‘control’ with both ‘consensus’ and ‘consociationalism’ within democracy. ‘Crypto-ethnic democracy’ also adds to existing typologies of multi-ethnic democracies, including differentiating the de facto dynamics of ‘control’ from the de jure institutions identified in traditional models of ‘ethnic democracy’. It is argued that the concept of ‘crypto-ethnic democracy’ has significant conceptual and comparative value for scholars.

Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1080/01436597.2021.1976632

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