India’s 1999 Elections and 20th Century Politics

The parliamentary elections of 1999 – India’s last elections in the 20 century – serve as a useful prism through which to examine the changing nature of Indian politics, both at the state and national levels, since independence in 1947. Bringing together reputed scholars from around the world, this volume describes and explains many facets of India’s current political landscape – in particular, the recent emergence of a complex multi-party system at the national level. The first two chapters focus on the broader issues. They review 50 years of national politics showing the resilience of multiculturalism and emphasizing the normative content of elections in terms of what they contribute to the democratic development of India. These chapters show that while multi-party based alliances involve political fusion they also encourage political fission as splinters groups emerge to become small parties and then claim a share in power. The ensuing 15 chapters examine these developments and processes at the state level. The contributors show that considerations of power rather than ideology have come to dominate coalition tactics. While each state has its own particularities, they largely mirror that national scene in terms of their political configurations. State-society relations in Kashmir, the role of caste in Bihar, and the politics of secessionism in Punjab are some of the specific issues taken up. The contributors examine the role played by factors such as caste, ethnicity and religion as also the increasing communalization of politics. They show that leadership, rather than the institutionalization of parties, appears to be playing an increasingly important role in Indian politics while maintaining that one-party dominance appears to be a thing of the past. Each chapter is rich in both empirical analysis and election data culled from primary sources. Overall, the volume provides many insights into India’s current political reality and will be of considerable interest to a wide readership. It will also serve a supplementary reading for courses in Indian politics, political sociology, and psephology.