A Borderless Internal Federal Space? Reorganization of States in India
By Mahendra Prasad Singh

Article 3 of the parliamentary-federal constitution of India is patently unfederal inasmuchas it grants the government and parliament unlimited power to redraw state boundaries, with the only obligation to “consult” the concerned state legislature(s) (with or without their consent). Notwithstanding this provision, by now practically all major linguistic communities (and at least two religious ones – Kashmiri Muslims and Punjabi Sikhs) and some tribal groups have succeeded, by mobilizing mass movements, to have states carved out where they are in majorities. Yet India being a puzzling mosaic of macro and micro communities, even today practically all states are left with numerous enclaves of communities and economically backward substate regions. Threats to their life, liberty, and property and complaints of dicriminatory policies and practices by intolerant provincial majorities are legion. The solution to the problem now lies less with minutely worked out schemes of further reorganization of smaller and smaller states ( in most cases). A better policy option must be found in evolving some kind of substate and supranational regional federal and confederal political arrangements across the states and nations conferring formal recognition to the existent and constructed informal and formal civil society, cultural, and trade relations under schemes of what David Held calls “cosmopolitan democracy” under constitutional and international laws.

 

Determining Indian Foreign Policy: An Examination of Prime Ministerial Leadership
By David Mitchell

Conventional wisdom is that Indian foreign policy, historically, has been driven by India’s prime ministers, but few systematic accounts exist of what this has meant for decision-making in India. This study presents a systematic examination of prime ministerial development and choice of policy by analyzing variations in leadership styles. It is argued here that the specific type of leadership style common to four Indian Prime Ministers (Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Atal Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh) has given Indian foreign policy the ability to adapt and change in different strategic contexts. By using the automated profiling software Profiler +, which is based on the profiling at a distance technique developed by Margaret Hermann, it is demonstrated that Indian prime ministers leadership style vary between being “strategic” and “opportunistic” in nature with the result that there is similarity between the prime ministers and their foreign policies.

 

Complex India
By Jitendra Nath Misra

This essay reviews two books of contrasting styles and subjects. Aseema Sinha explains why parts of India have fared well and others poorly. Sita Venkateswar calls for the protection of the rights of the original inhabitants of the Andaman Islands. Sinha deals with the regenerative aspect of development, and Venkateswar with its disruptive aspects. Sinha’s research is on the interplay between the federal structure and uneven economic progress. Venkateswar addresses the loss of a people’s inheritance. The author argues that, despite the contrasts, the books have a common theme, the plight of those at a disadvantage. In his view it is not enough to blame the tribes and inefficient states and communities for being left behind. These books are important because they enhance our understanding of the causes of such imbalance and, as the world ponders India’s emerging global role, they make important contributions to the literature on India’s developmental experience.