Panel No. 31

Panel Title: Political Development and the Process of Democratization in South Asia

Convenor: Erik Komarov, Institute of Oriental Studies, Russian Academy of Siencies, Moscow

   Venue: Nya Festsalen in the Academic Society Building, Sandgatan 2
    Tuesday 6 July, 13–18
    & Tornrummet (Tower Room) in the Academic Society Building
    Wednesday 7 July, 8–12

Panel Abstract: The aim of the panel is to dicuss empirical and theoretical fiindings of the studies of recent and current changes in the polity of South Asian countries with a special reference to the process of democracratization, both its progress and set-backs. Papers are sought which analys from different perspectives constitutional development, party systems and single political parties, election, coolition politics, socio-professional organizations both traditional and modern, ideological conditions and possibly other developments relating to the theme of te panel. Papers are wellcome which deal with the above issues at the all-South Asia level or in individual Soth Asian countries or in particular areas of the same. Cross-country comparisons within and outside Soth Asia are solicited as well.

Papers accepted for presentation in the panel:

Paper Giver 1: Erik Komarov, Institute of Oriental Studies, Russian Academy of Siencies, Moscow, Russian Federation

Paper 1 Title: Political Development in South Asia and Regularities of Democratization

Paper Abstract: The countries under consideration are India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The differences of their socio-historical conditions before Independence are referred to as conditioning differences in forms of transitional political system that emerged thereafter. An attempt is made to define the two more or less common major stages of socio-political development of South Asian countries: the first – from the achievement of Independence till the early 1970s, the second – thereon through 1990s;the third stage appears to be unfolding now. The non-unilinear process of democratization ultimately resulting from socio-economic and human development and gathering momentum especially by the end of the second stage is viewed as alternation of differently composed combinations of authoritarian and democratic components of transitional political system differing country- wise. The paper focuses on the development of competitive multiparty system as the major operative unit of political democracy. A special reference is made to the transition from one-party dominance to a more competitive multiparty set-up. That is one of the regularities of democratization observed in a number of developed countries after World War II as well as currently in India and in a different way in Bangladesh and prospectively in Pakistan in the process of withering away of authoritarian military rule or military control over civilian rule.
In this connection three following concepts are suggested also as regularities of democratization relating primarily to India but essentially not only to her. First, the rise of the system of alternative parties both similar to, and different from, two-party system. Second, regional development of opposition parties (but not only of regional parties) leading to the rise of alternative parties initially at the level of states and subsequently at the national level. Third, the rise and development of coalition politics through two consecutive types of coalitions: `coreless` and `core-based` coalitions. Fourth, transition from confrontation to competition reflected in the reduction of differences between positions of the major political actors on the basic issues of socio-economic and political development. It makes possible the very rise of alternative parties and the respective coalition politics. However it is frequently accompanied by a new upsurge of communalism now often turned into fundamentalism with terrorism, its bloody off-shoot retarding democratization but hardly changing the mainstream of political development in South Asia.

      Full paper to be downloaded (as a pdf-file)

Paper Giver 2: Gyasuddin Molla, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh

Paper 2 Title: Democratic Institution Building Process in Bangladesh: Model Building –
A Failure? , Capacity Development – A Sine Qua Non?

Paper Abstract: Bangladesh since its traumatic birth in 1971 traversed a long way – from populist democracy to elected authoritarianism to military dictatorship to parliamentary democracy – to develop a political system .In every stage the country had to encounter ”indigeneous forces” toward the process of institutionalization of democracy. The adherence of Bengali people to democratic way of governance, though halted under the whims of military administration for a longer period since mid-1975, ably sounded its resurgence through the mass movement of 1990 to take shape in democratic transition since 1991.
The military regimes of one and a half decade with a brief interlude of a civilian government of ten months forced democracy to whither away from, and democratic institutions to degenerate in, Bangladesh. The 1990 mass movement swept away the military regime and a 'care-taker government' was instituted to hold a free and fair parliamentary election. The resurgence of democracy in 1991 convinced political leaders in building a model of ”care-taker government' with constitutional sanctity to guarantee transparency and fairness (as elections under the party government are sure to be fraudulent) in the electoral process of the country. The model earned reputation and acceptability through the free, fair and clear election of 1996 and transferring power to the elected government.
Model of non-party care-taker government for organizing elections enabled democracy to take root in Bangladesh ; along with this the system developed the capacity of establishing consensus on national issues, setting the example to develop the office of the Head of the state as an institution of national unity, strengthening parliamentary standing committees, ensuring unfettered freedom to the press and electronic media, and handing over power to the constitutional care-taker government for holding parliamentary election in 2001.Besides, commitment of political leadership to make parliament effective, no parliament boycott, ensure meaningful role for opposition in next parliament and making the office of the speaker non-partisan would enable Bangladesh to establish an effective democracy in the new millennium.
The in-built proneness of political elites to defame the electoral system marred the credibility and neutrality of the new model in 2001 election and posed critical challenges for the budding democracy of Bangladesh. On the other hand, the political culture of acute parochial partisanship encourages 'politics of confrontation' and hinders capacity development of Bangladesh political system to sustain the growth of democratic institutions. The paper deals with the critical challenges Bangladesh faced in its democratic way of governance, the efforts it undertook to overcome those challenges and future commitments to make Bangladesh's developing democracy a meaningful one in the new millennium.

      Full paper to be downloaded (as a pdf-file)

Paper Giver 3: Taiabur Rahman, City University of Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China

Paper 3 Title: Making Government Accountable:A Comparative Analysis of the Working of Parliamentary Committees in Bangladesh and India

Paper Abstract: Post-colonial transitions to democracy in two leading South Asian democracies-Bangladesh, India and have mixed experience of parliamentary government. Despite belonging to the most impoverished nations of the world, democracy in these two countries has endured contrary to the thesis that economic development is a prerequisite for democracy. A crucial aspect of the functioning of democracy in these two countries has been the ability of parliaments to survive and perform substantially the key parliamentary tasks of representation, legislation and oversight of the executives. This paper is above all, about the role of parliamentary committees in securing executive accountability, particularly after the restoration and resumption of the parliamentary system of government in Bangladesh in 1991.
Since 1991, in an attempt to strengthen the role of parliament vis-à-vis the executive, some alterations were made to the formal arrangements of parliament in general and the committee system in particular in Bangladesh. What are the implications of these new arrangements for ensuring executive accountability in Bangladesh within a more congenial political atmosphere? For better comprehension of the influence and role of legislative committees in securing executive accountability in Bangladesh, a comparative study of the parliamentary committee system in India is also attempted.
A cultural-institutional approach as a macro analytical framework has been adopted for this study which draws on broad cultural/institutional theory. In analyzing parliamentary committees, a critical context is parliaments themselves. A strong parliament is believed to fare better to hold the government to account. Hence the study strives to investigate the ways in which scholars have sought to capture or measure parliamentary strength and weakness. On this basis, the study presents a series of basic typologies of legislatures. However, as these typologies are rather crude, it then focuses on additional factors that are relevant in determining parliamentary strength. In this regard, it is necessary to recall that parliament cannot be insulated from the effects of wider social, economic and political contexts and that in a democracy the functioning of parliament is inexorably linked with the functioning of other key institutions. Then the study looks closely into parliamentary committees, which are generally conceived to be the most significant internal instrument of a legislature and attempts to work out the factors that help determine the strength of committees to influence or constrain the government.
This study is based on extensive fieldwork undertaken in parliaments of Bangladesh and India. On the basis of the interviews and a questionnaire survey of the key parliamentary committee officials (MPs and committee staffers) the study seeks to review the strength of contemporary parliaments in these two major South Asian democracies to constrain/influence governments in the light of the theoretical framework constructed.
Effective functioning of parliaments which is at the heart of continuity and strengthening of democratic governance in this strategically important region of the world matters for maintaining world peace and order. Despite the prevalence of poverty, religion and poor law and order in these two countries, they still bear immense potentials to become models for other third world and Muslim countries to follow. Hence this study is worthwhile and carries significant merits.

Paper Giver 4: Shantanu Majumder, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh

Paper 4 Title: De-secularization of the State and the Growth of Religious Fundamentalism in Bangladesh

Paper Abstract: In analyzing the failure of the secular politics and the growth of religious fundamentalism in a non-western state, Bangladesh can be treated as an important case study. Though Bangladesh obtained its independence in 1971 on the basis of the idea of secularism and with a refusal to religious nationalism, nowadays, religious fundamentalism with a complete rejection to secularism has become able to stand as a potential threat to the state structure and at the same time their success in gaining support from the mass is increasing day by day. The existing reality of Bangladesh indicates that initiation of the project of secular ideology in a mechanical way without creating hegemony among the mass is bound to fail as there is no guarantee of secularization on the level of individual consciousness or on the societal level through the process of secularization on the state level.
In this essay an attempt has been made to identify some of the reasons behind the failure of the secular force and the triumph of the anti-secular anti-modernist religious fundamentalism in Bangladesh, which may be helpful in the realization that without considering the historical trajectory of the non-Western areas initiation of the project of modernity could contribute in the growth of counter-secularization and the explosion of religious fervor. In this connection, this article tries to analyze how the modern-secular educated intelligentsia in the pre-independence era (post-independent era as well), biased by the idea of objectification and bureaucratic rationality, views the state craft in fully secular and scientific terms and in this way, give over emphasis on the acceptance of western secularism as equal to the acceptance of the ideology of progress and modernity that help the anti-secular force in the long run. Moreover, attention has been given to realize the negative impact of treating religious people as backward, superstitious, or reactionary in general, by the modern- secular elite (both nationalist and Leftist) in the Bengali society. Again, this article holds the view that generalization of the term fundamentalism by the mainstream Western media and politics has contributed to the spread of religious fanaticism in Bangladesh, like some other Muslim states. Beside these, this paper aimed to investigate a relationship between the aid from some of the Islamic countries and the success of the religious fundamentalism in Bangladesh in capturing the space of the civil society. Finally, this article put emphasis on the argument that though once the secularist elite in Bangladesh had great success in infiltrating the idea of secularism among the urban middle class, due to the problem in understanding the differences between the idea of religion-as-faith and religion-as-ideology, severely failed in the cultural transformation of the mass of the society.

Paper Giver 5: Sobhanlal Datta Gupta, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, India

Paper 5 Title: The Ideological Vision of the Left in the Struggle for Democracy in India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan in recent Times

Paper Abstract: The paper tries to examine how, following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the subsequent crisis in international communism, the Left forces in India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan are trying to ideologically confront the challenges posed by the highly volatile and complex situation in these countries. While basically the Left in these countries is trying to put forward an alternative perspective of democracy by linking it with the vision of socialism, there are fundamental differences in their perceptions. In India the Left, broadly represented by the two Communist Parties and the CPI (Marxist-Leninist), is operating in conditions of a stable democracy. The points of agreement and differences among these parties of the Indian Left vis vis the struggle for democracy in India are today primarily revolving around the question of fighting communalism and separatism. Bangladesh and Nepal may broadly be characterised as transitional democracies, although with one major difference. In Bangladesh historically the struggle for democracy against military authoritarianism strengthened the Left forces and today it is extremely fragmented in its confrontation with the Awami League/BNP regimes, despite the attempt of the CPB (Communist Party of Bangladesh) to revitalise itself very recently. In Nepal, the Left's fight for democracy was mainly against monarchical authoritarianism and in 1991 Nepal witnessed the rare phenomenon of coming together of all the leading communist groups and the formation of the CPN (Unified Marxist-Leninist). The paper will examine its perception of the highly complex struggle for democracy and its leading role in the political system of the country following the replacement of the authoritarian panchayat system by multi-party democracy in 1990. An altogether different perspective of the struggle, represented by the CPN (Maoist), in recent years will also be discussed. In Pakistan, the transition to democracy is yet to take place and the fragmented Left, primarily represented by the CMKP (Communist Mazdoor Kisan Party, formed in 1995 by the union of Communist Party of Pakistan and Mazdor Kisan Party), is primarily engaged in a struggle for transition from military to civilian rule. The paper, based primarily on official documents of these parties, will examine their ideological visions in a theoretical and critical perspective.

      Full paper to be downloaded (as a pdf-file)

Paper Giver 6: B. Mohanan, Gandhigram University, Gandhigram, Tamil Nadu, India

Paper 6 Title: Coalition Politics in India:A Study on Social Formations and the Politics o Coalitions with Special Reference to Kerala State

Paper Abstract: Kerala is a tiny state in the South West Coast of India. Kerala has been in the limelight ever since the state came under the control of Communist Party of India (CPI) in 1957through popular election. Kerala is famous for its achievements in social sector Development, particularly in the area of education and health.
Kerala is also known for the kind of bi-party pattern of coalition ever since the dismissal of the Communist Government in 1959, by the central government in New Delhi.
In the bi-party pattern of coalition politics in Kerala, power is alternated between the Communist Party of India (CPM) controlled Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Congress (I) controlled United Democratic Front (UDF).
This kind of change of ruling front after every general election is due to the game of balance of power that social formations in Kerala have been playing. The principal players in this game are the middle class among Nairs,(The dominant Hindu forward Caste of Kerala) Ezhavas,(The dominant backward Hindu Caste of Kerala) Christians and Muslims, by the instrumentality of Nair Service Society (NSS), Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP), the Christian Church and the Muslim League. The above said middle class sections have always attempted to tilt the balance in their favour by sitting inside the well – entrenched fortifications such as NSS, SNDP,Muslim League and various political platforms of the Christian Church in Kerala in general and Syrian Christians in particular. This is in fact, the integral component of the inner dynamics of the coalition politics in Kerala. Even a cursory look at the social base of the congress(I) led United Democratic Front (UDF) and CPI (M) led Left Democratic Front (LDF) would make the above point further clear. Power has alternated between these two coalition configurations owing to the making and unmaking of equilibrium and disequilibrium by the social formulations mentioned above. The positive outcome of the game, it seems, is a stable bipolar power balance which provides a fair degree of administrative stability and communal harmony in the state.

Paper Giver 7: Feliks N. Yurlov, Institute of Oriental Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russian Federation

Paper 7 Title: India: Coalition as a Form of Democratic Governance

Paper Abstract: In the last few years India experienced a radical turnover to a coalition form of governance at the Centre. This dramatic change was not a spontaneous one but rather well prepared by formation of a multiparty system in the country. This process started even before India attained its independence, and accelerated after 1947, first at the States’ level, then at the Centre. Coalition governments in the States (Kerala since 1950s, West Bengal, Bihar and some other States since 1960s) and at the Centre (since late 1970s) laid the foundation of a democratic coalition governance in India.
Democratization of socio-political life and decentralization of power ultimately undermined one-party rule of the Indian National Congress. All this led to strengthening the positions of the States and self-identification of different ethnic groups. These developments gave impetus to creation of new political parties, which represented the interests of those ethnic groups and regions. These factors led to regionalization of the party-political system and growing dependence of the Centre on the regional parties.
Simultaneously, further social stratification took place. The creation of the numerous middle class, the empowering of the agricultural castes as a result of the agrarian reforms, and involvement of the lower castes and classes into the socio-political life were noticable features of this process.
Coalition governments at the Centre and in the States will continue to be an important part of the democratic process in India in the foreseeable future as they adequately fit into the conditions of pluralistic and multiconfessional society passing through a period of complex transformation of social, economic and political life.

Paper Giver 8: Nirmal Raju, Maharaja’s College, University of Mysore, India

Paper 8 Title: Ambedkar and Karnataka – The Emergence of Renaissance Ideas among Dalits

Paper Abstract: Indian renaissance movement originated in the 19th Century under the leadership of Rajaram Mohan Roy of Bengal. Others followed him and the Bengal model gradually penetrated in to interior parts of India, including Karnataka in the beginning of the 20th Century. Renaissance means revival or reconstruction on the basis of old traditions and heritage, as well as synthesizing them with good features of western civilization. Indian renaissance leaders did not agree on all specific problems of Indian Society and Religion. In the beginning the renaissance leadership was confined to upper castes. Gradually the leadership appeared among the depressed classes and castes of India. Among them the most out standing was Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. A Maharastrian Mahar by caste and foreign educated and genius, Ambedkar’s ideology transcended the barrier of region and became a pan – Indian movement. In India it is difficult to separate religion from society. In this sense the movement launched by Ambedkar assumes socio-religious dimensions. It is possible to view the movement as religious and as well as a social separately or in amalgamation. The impact of Ambedkar at the Indian level has been studied with sufficient attention. But Ambedkar’s impact at the regional level has not received sufficient attention. Hence this paper mainly devoted to study the impact of Ambedkar at a regional level namely Karnataka with a view to see him as a renaissance leader among the Dalits. The following questions have been raised in the paper and tried to answer them.

* When did Ambedkar’s Idealogy enter Karnataka?
* Did Ambedkar visit Karnataka?
* Did Ambedkar correspond with local Dalit leaders or rulers.
* Did Ambedkar write anything about situation in Karnataka. Here it may be remembered that, parts of Karnataka in the colonial period were included in Bombay presidency and closed to centers of Ambedkar’s activities.
* What are the specifics by which the memory of Ambedkar have been established, preserved and propagated.
* What is the nature of Ambedkar’s impact on Kannada literature.
* Was Dalit literature in Kannada due to Ambedkar’s influence.
* Who were the regional leaders who claimed Ambedkar’s inspiration for their socio-religious activities in Karnataka.

Paper Giver 9: Ji-Eun Lee, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India

Paper 9 Title: Dalit Empowerment in Independent India—comparative research on two political parties, RPI and BSP

Paper Abstract:
Political equality, without which democracy cannot exist, is the core spirit the universal suffrage supports. It does not confine itself to investing all citizens with the same rights, but has to compensate for social inequalities among citizens. The Republic of India therefore employs the reservation system, by which underprivileged groups can have proper opportunities to develop themselves. By the constitution of India 81 seats out of 543 seats of Lok Sabha were supposed to be reserved for the SCs, 40 seats for STs. Also, certain percentage of Vidhan Sabha seats reserved for minorities according to the provincial population proportion.
It requires more discussions on how substantial that ‘democracy’ being exercised in India has been in the sense of empowerment of minorities and traditionally underprivileged groups, however. The number of MPs and MLAs reserved for the minorities does guarantee neither the appropriate share of power nor the enough influence on the government or party policies. Indian parliament has over 120 MPs from underprivileged section and every party has its SC, ST leaders but they have not been able to assert for minority issues. Minority assertiveness has found its way in establishing the political party which can mainly advocate the rights of minorities and pursue to hold the political power. We have more than several Dalit political parties in India, among which two are prominent; one is Republican Party of India (RPI), a traditional Dalit party founded in1957, relatively strong in Maharashtra, the other is Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), founded in Punjab in 1980s and became powerful in northern Indian states especially in Uttar Pradesh (UP) in recent years. We will compare these two parties and probe how much degree they have contributed to the political empowerment of Dalit.
Though all the political process related to above two parties happened in different states, times and context, there are analogies between two situations in the points that they are basically ‘Dalit parties’ sharing similar ideology and aligned with the large ‘national’ parties holding power in central government. We will in detail trace the political process done by RPI and BSP, during the period of 1965-1980 and 1990-2003 respectively with the special attention to the nature of alliance they have formed with other parties. How political alignments with ideologically different parties affected the legitimacy of ‘Dalit parties’ and what degree of virtual empowerment has been achieved for the Dalits as a result of alignment will be answered with the reference of political process of above period. Following the tracks of movement of two Dalit political parties, we will be able to evaluate their contribution to the political equality and empowerment of underprivileged people in India.

Paper Giver 10: Hans Gorm Norden Andersen, Roskilde Universitetscenter, Denmark

Paper 10 Title: The Local Party – Democratization in Rural Nepal

Paper Abstract: The political parties of Nepal have often been described as nothing put personality driven factions each seeking to capture state resources as a source of patronage power or private wealth. This account is not unique to Nepal – ‘patronage parties’ or ‘machine politics’ are terms applied to describe political system in many other developing countries. The parties are ambiguously seen as a prerequisite for democratisation, on the one hand, yet an obstacle, on the other. Several observers in Nepal tend to see parties at the national level in the first perspective. The local party, however, is often deemed either irrelevant or a serious hindrance. When people have basic needs, it is argued, the ‘party colour’ of the water post or the school building should not matter to them. Rather than engaging in party conflict, villagers should unite. This paper shows why villagers often don’t – and how this is not necessarily a hindrance neither to local democratisation, nor to local development. Based on field research, the paper analyses how local parties and followers engaged in vigorous struggles dividing villages into factions and affecting resource allocations to serve political rather than purely technical ends. But it also shows how these struggles transformed villages into vibrant political arenas weakening traditional structures and giving momentum to local development. Did the parties hinder democratisation? Far from it, the paper suggests. It is noted how local politics has since changed in Nepal after the return to autocratic rule in 2002.

      Full paper to be downloaded (as a pdf-file)

Paper Givers 11: Dhirendra Vajpeyi, and Dubravka Svetina, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, USA.

Paper 11 Title: Local Government and the Process of Democratization in a Global Age: All Politics is Local – a Case Study of South Asia

Paper Abstract: The collapse of communism and the end of the cold war not only contributed to the liberation of Eastern Europe from oppressive-authoritarian regimes in the 1990s unleashing people’s desire to govern themselves, but it also led to a wider acceptance of the globalization process both in developed and developing countries. In political terms, process of democratization and self-determination significantly impacted the operation and philosophy of local governments, and the relationship between national and sub-national levels of governments. The shift in the paradigm – from extreme centralization to decentralization – and the consequent changes within the national state (privatization of state services, restructuring of local government systems, and changes in intergovernmental relationships), posed both challenges and problems for the leaders of both developed and developing countries. The acceptance of the globalization model, however, was not universal particularly in countries of Asia and Africa. The changes, therefore, have also been uneven. Our discussion will analyze the shift in the local-state-national relationship due to globalization and democratization in South Asia.

Paper Givers 12: Shesh Kanta Kafle, Agro-Farm Foresters Association Nepal (AFFAN), and Krishna Karkee, District Development Committee, Kapilavastu, Nepal

Paper 12 Title: Towards Ideal Local Governance. Strengthening Participatory Development in Nepal

Paper Abstract: Nepal has experienced a rapid transformation of the traditional role of local authorities from local administration into local government in recent years. The pace of decentralization is seen accelerated after the promulgation of Local Self-Governance Act – 1999 and subsequent Rules – 1999. This paper reviews the prevailing theories of local government and examines the status of decentralization, salient features of good governance and major initiatives taken by local authorities towards good governance. Opportunities and challenges to the good governance in Nepal have also been explored.

      Full paper to be downloaded (as a pdf-file)

Paper Giver 13: Ratan Khasnabis, Calcutta University, Kolkata, India

Paper 13 Title: Rural Self-Government in West Bengal. The West Bengal Panchayats

Paper Abstract: According to United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), ‘decentralisation is counterpoint to globalisation. Globalisation often removes decisions from the local and national stage to the global sphere of multinational or non-national interests. Decentralisation on the other hand brings decision making back to the sub-national and local levels’. The UNDP also observes that, decentralisation is a form and a process of governance as well. A good decentralised governance includes the forms and procedures that allow a society to achieve at the sub-national and local levels various goals of welfare, such as, poverty alleviation, sustainable livelihood and gender equality. Of course, these goals cannot be achieved automatically through decentralisation. They must be designed into the decentralisation process itself.
In order to design these goals through decentralisation, it is imperative that the participation of the people in the process for decentralised governance is ensured. To qoute from the UNDP again, ‘popular participation is crucial in each phase of decentralisation--- from situational analysis to design, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and feedback. Participation must be based on mutual trust and understanding of various factors, acknowledging that, each has both strengths and weaknesses.’
In India the process of decentralised development was acknowledged as a key factor in ensuring rural development. A decentralised system that devolves the decision making power to the grassroots level was expected to be realised with necessary changes in the Constitution that would recognise the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRI) as organs of the local self-government. Such changes in the Constitution of India were introduced in 1993.
In the present paper, the author reviews the working of the Panchyati Raj Institutions in India with specific reference to West Bengal. It has been observed that even though the PRI in West Bengal functions in a better way than its counter parts in most of the other 28 states in India, there are problems with the West Bengal PRI as well. West Bengal has achieved a lot. This is largely due to the political will of the communists who rule the State since 1977. But decentralisation that aims at empowering the people through devolution has several dimensions, many of which remain unrealised in the state.
The paper analyses these issues and observes that West Bengal is still to work out a viable methodology that might empower the people in the participatory process of development. It is not enough to empower the PRIs. Power has to flow further downward so that the participation of the village residents in the planning and implementation of development programmes is ensured. In short, the PRI themselves have to introduce participatory process in the decisions they take. Thanks to Kerala experiment on people’s plan, a viable methodology to prepare Panchayats’ development plans with wide participation of people appears to have developed in a State of India. The paper discusses the methodology and points out the difference between what West Bengal practices and what is being practiced in Kerala as regards the participatory development.
The basic problem of the West Bengal PRI System, as we elaborate in this paper, is that it lacks financial autonomy which is a must for participatory development. Planning becomes a futile exercise unless the plan is backed by adequate financial support. Again, without the support of ‘united fund’, the flexibility which a plan process would require remains unrealised. The problem of West Bengal is that unlike what happens in Kerela, there is hardly any provision of financial devolution at the PRI level in the state budget. The State applies its discretion in making provision for ‘united fund’. As a result, the planning at the PRI level remains severely constrained by the wish or will of the State level authority.
The remedy might have been found out, had the PRI been able to mobilise its own resources for supporting its plan. As we discuss in the paper, the percentage of own revenue is abysmally low in West Bengal PRI. The reason appears to be structural in nature. It seems that the State needs a thorough revision in the types of taxes and the ‘other income’ that the PRI is entitled to collect.
The paper concludes that the political will which is necessary for realising the goal of autonomy for the PRI is missing in the State to a great extent, even though it is being ruled by the left.

Paper Giver 14: Khuram Iqbal, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan.

Paper 14 Title: Devolution of power and rural livelihoods: A case study of a marginal village in Pakistan

Paper Abstract: The decentralization of power from central to local level is part of a global trend to reduce the role of central government in order to increase the efficiency of services, as well as to promote pluralism, public participation, democracy and empowerment of the poor. In this context, on 14 August 2001, the new system of local governments was implemented in Pakistan, which replaced the century old colonial system of bureaucratic governance. In the previous system of governance at the local level, the province governs the districts directly through the bureaucracy at the division and district levels. And the local government for towns and cities exist separately from those of the rural areas. The provincial bureaucratic set-ups were the designated ‘controlling authorities’ of the local governments, and tend to undermine and over-ride them, which breeds a colonial relationship of ‘ruler’ and ‘subject’. The separate local government structures engender rural-urban antagonism, while the administration’s role as ‘controlling authorities’ accentuates the rural-urban divide. The Local Government design is based on five fundamentals: devolution of political power, decentralization of administrative authority, deconcentration of management functions, diffusion of the power-authority nexus, and distribution of resources to the district level. It is designed to ensure that the genuine interests of the people are served and their rights safeguarded.
Policies, institutions and processes form the context within which individuals and households construct and adapt livelihood strategies. On the other hand these institutionally shaped livelihood strategies may have an impact on the sustainable development. The present paper analyzes the impact of devolution plan upon livelihood strategies of people living marginal rural areas of Pakistan. Sustainable Livelihood Framework developed by UK based Department of International Affairs (DfID) has been used to identify livelihood assets, livelihood strategies and livelihood outcomes of the rural people.

Paper Giver 15: Soumen Bagchi, ICRA Limited, New Delhi.

Paper 15 Title: Decentralised Urban Governance in India. Issues Concerning Financing of Urban Infrastructure

Paper Abstract: Decentralisation initiative in India is often considered to be a process purposefully adopted as a result of its need arising out of various political, social and economic factors. However, a different school of thought considers decentralisation a fall out of the globalisation and liberalisation process, the World over. Much of the literature on decentralisation, normative and empirical, is based on industrial countries and assumes the existence of institutions that are usually very weak in developing countries. Urban decentralisation- devolving powers and responsibilities to the municipal bodies (the city governments) was a result of the increasing pace of urbanisation, particularly in the larger cities. The urban areas in general and the larger cities in particular became the hub of industrial and economic activities after the local market got mingled up with the global market. The larger cities often referred to as the Global Cities attracted most of the foreign direct investments and portfolio investments. This was mainly due to the fact that these cities were able to provide the basic minimum infrastructure requirement for overall development. The increasing flow of investments into the city needed adequate infrastructure support in the form of transport, basic amenities and housing. As a consequence, there was a need to devolve powers and authorities to the lower tiers of government- the municipal bodies that are largely responsible for the provision of infrastructure facilities with city limits.
To address the issue in a systematic fashion, the paper has been divided into following six sections. The introductory discussion is followed by a discussion of the evolution of the process of decentralisation in India particularly in the context of urban governance in the second section. The third section discusses the conceptual and theoretical issues in measuring decentralisation and the relevance of the relevance of index in the current context. The fourth section develops the pooled- data model to analyse the impact of decentralisation on resource mobilisation capacity of the municipal bodies. This would be separately done for all the three tiers of ULBs- in India- municipal corporations, municipal councils and nagar panchayats. A similar pooled data analysis would be done in the fifth section to analyse the impact of decentralisation on the financing of urban basic services. The sixth and the final section summarises the results of the analysis provides an evaluation of the decentralisation process in India.

      Full paper to be downloaded (as a pdf-file)

Paper Giver 16: Medha Chandra, University College London, UK

Paper 16 Title: Bridging Everyday and High Politics – the 74th CAA and Inclusion in Kolkata, India

Paper Abstract: The Indian legislation for decentralisation of urban local government, the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act (CAA) has tried to create greater inclusion of the public in municipal governance as well as make it more accessible for all. Using the case of Kolkata in West Bengal, this paper argues that this inclusionary agenda of the 74th CAA is impacted by both the political culture and the bureaucratic culture of the city. The examination of the political culture includes not just the elements of High Politics but also the elements of everyday politics that affects the way municipal bureaucrats and political representatives interact with the public. This paper argues that the High Politics of the interactions between the established political culture and the emergent one at local level is leading to the decentralisation process being undermined. Fulfilling of the inclusionary agenda is also impacted by everyday politics of bias, exclusion, favour and similar overt and covert practices, as reflected in the interactions between the members of the municipal channels and the public. This is coupled with uneasiness towards decentralisation among municipal councillors, bureaucrats and politicians. These factors lead to various subversive strategies being used by the constituents of the municipal channel to nullify the impact of the 74th CAA’s directives. The case of Ward Committees and women’s reservations at municipal level in Kolkata are examined to illustrate how these inclusionary provisions of the 74th CAA are unable to fulfil their intended mandate due to the impact of the elements of High politics and everyday politics on municipal governance in the city.

      Full paper to be downloaded (as a pdf-file)

Paper Giver 17: Purabi Roy, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India

Paper 17 Title: New Findings on Subhas Chandra Bose from British, Russian and Indian Archives

Paper Abstract: In August 1945 the mysterious disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose haunts with an inquiry – what really happened to him? Since then many incoherent reports and informations were produced, Committee (1956) and Commission (1972) were set up, but none of these attempts could satisfy with a conclusive proof. The inquiry would have remained unchallenged if not Lord Peter Archer of Labour Party in British Parliament had persuaded the British Government to declassify a few war office records of MI 2 related to Indian National Army. The Provisional Government of Azad Hind and many move interesting documents related to S.C. Bose at Public Record office, London. In the meantime the ‘Glasnost’ and ‘Perestroika’ could melt the seventy years ice-berg of Soviet Archives which made possible to unravel the documents related to S.C. Bose and Comintern, Bose and USSR, all these have unfolded a new line of research. The Government of India also took a bold step to declassify about one thousand files related to Indian National Army and S.C. Bose.
The present research primarily tries to assimilate the unearthed documents collected from various archival sources and to cater S.C. Bose’s plan, programme and activities, his relation with USSR during and after the World war II and many other unknown facts, during the period 1941-1945. These untold stories might suggest an answer to the inquiry – what really happened to Subhas Chandra Bose. Obviously the answer may have its current relevance.

Paper Giver 18: K. Sadashiva, University of Mysore, Karnataka, India

Paper 18 Title : Emergence and Clash of Multiple Loyalties in the context of crisis of State and Nation – The case study of Princely Mysore during the Colonial period (1902-1947)

Paper Abstract: The first half of 20th century was a formative period in the history of modern South Asia. The forces like colonialism, nationalism, communalism, fundamentalism, regionalism, casteism and linguism clashed during this period. The nature of the conflict among several variables was unique as well as similar from region to region and place to place. In other words during the last phase of British imperialism and colonialism, multiple loyalties emerged in order to put forward their own interests. This factor made the nation building process more complex and difficult. In this web of multiple loyalties the states in the British imperial structure were also caught up.
The Princely states had their own peculiar relationship with the Paramount Power within the imperial structure. Among about 600 Princely states, the historical context of Princely Mysore presents a fascinating study. To put it in simple terms Rajabhakti (devotion to royalty) and Deshabhakti (devotion to Nation) found itself in opposite camps. Besides, the power equation among the Resident, the Maharaja and the Dewan came to play a significant part. In this paper an attempt will be made to identify the multiple loyalties as well as the approach of the Maharaja Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV towards these complexities. It is interesting to note that Mysore emerged as a Model State and received acclamation from none other than Mahatma Gandhiji.
For the preparation of this paper mostly Archival sources, Mysore Legislative Assembly Debates, Autobiographies of eminent personalities and news papers will be used.

Paper Giver 19: Gururaj Bidikar, University of Mysore, India

Paper 19 Title: Social Legislations Empowering Women in the Native State of Mysore during the Colonial Period – A Study in the Political Development and Process of Democratization

Paper Absract: The native state Mysore as a colonial appendage emerged in 1800. The Wodeyar family received the state as a gift from the British conquerers after the defeat of Tipu Sultan in1799. Krishna Raja Wodeyar III, Chamarajendra Wodeyar X, Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV and Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar were the rulers during the colonial period. The polity of Mysore State of this period may be described as 'enlightened despotism' within the state and subordinate state within the British empire. Generally the British model and the British initiatives through the British resident were implemented in the native state, as well as on the initiatives of the rulers. During the colonial period, Mysore emerged as a model state among the Indian native states. The traditional pattern was changing to the modern pattern. Industrialization was carried on and higher education was started. Modern transportation and communication were developed. Agriculture was expanded.
In addition to above, democratization process was initiated by the Maharajas of the state with the help of the able Dewans. Representative Assembly and Legislative assembly were established. The state faced two challenges in the colonial period:
1) Nationalism 2) The Movement for the establishment of responsible government. The advent of Mahatma Gandhi after 1920, furthered the democratization process.
Against this background, Social Legislations empowering women will be studied. The following aspects will be discussed in this paper.
1. Abolition of 'Sati'. 2. Abolition of infant marriage. 3. Access to higher education.
4. Participation of women in politics. 5. Women as freedom fighters. 6. Women in social service. 7. Royal women in times of need in the political system.

Paper Giver 20: Naimur Rahman, Maharani College of Arts for Women, Mysore, India

Paper 20 Title: Muslim response to challenges of colonialism & nationalism in the princely state of Mysore (1900-1947)

Paper Abstract: The princely state of Mysore in modern period was the result of colonial construction in about 1800 AD, after the fall of Tippu Sultan.It is interesting to know Hyder Ali & Tippu Sultan of Mysore were formidable enemies of colonial expansion under the East India Company in second half of 18th Century. Their efforts to check & even, if possible to eliminate the dominance of British from the politics of India resulted in their own destruction,because of the complex historical forces of period. They refused till their lost breath to accept the subordination & to make Mysore a subsidiary to colonial system of the British.This part of history of princely Mysore state clearly demonstrate how two Muslim rulers responded to political development of South India. It is true that if Hyder Ali or Tippu Sultan had followed the foot steps of Nizam of Hyderabad or nawabs of Bengal who agreed to subsidiary alliances, their descendents would have securely ruled Mysore state till 1947.
With the fall of Tippu Sultan the Victorious colonial power restructured the state , cutting it off from coastal region & handed it over ”as a gift” to the royal family of Mysore. It was in this state in 20th Century we see clash of colonialism & various dimension of nationalism taking place. It was under the rule of Two Maharaja's of Mysore Krishnaraja Wodyer - iv and Jayachamaraja Wodyer (1900 to 1947) Mysore state emerged as model state among princely states of India & earned acclamation form Mahathma Gandhi. Under one muslim Dewan Sir Mirza Ismail the state made tremendous progress. However between 1900 - 1947 the princely state became part of number of political agitation & movements which were to end the monarchical & colonial rule in the state .
Against this background the present paper intends to make an analytical study of muslim response to the challenges of colonialism & nationalism as part of political development & democratization process.
The following questions will be addressed in the paper:

• In the political context of princely state in South what was the attitude of Mysore Muslims towards Muslim League of India
• How did they view the ideology of Mohd Ali Jinnah
• How did they address ”Two Nations Theory”
• What was muslim response to call of divide & quit in 1942.
• Muslims & All India Congress.
• What caused communal riots under mirza rule in otherwise in the model state of communual harmony.
• What was the role of muslims in evolving the democratic process in the state.

Archival material deposited in Karnataka; Bangalore and Mysore as well as contemporary records & other Kannada sources will be used for the present studies.