From the Margins to the Mainstream: Institutionalising Minorities in South Asia

Hugo Gorringe, Roger Jeffery, Suryakant Waghmore

SAGE Publications, Jan 7, 2016 - Political Science - 332 pages

A brilliant analysis of the socio-political processes that help us understand the challenges faced by marginalized populations for representation and recognition in India.

The premise of democratic politics is that all citizens are equal and have an equal right to a say in national politics. This definition of democracy, however, is observed far more in the breach than in practice. Muslims, Dalits and Adivasis continue their struggle to seek entry into the institution from which they seem to be barred. Drawing on in-depth case studies the book explores how marginalized groups that achieve a degree of political inclusion often discover that it amounts to ‘adverse incorporation’ which is disempowering because it requires them to moderate or abandon key demands. The book is a unique work on the irony of ‘institutionalization’.

About the author

Hugo Gorringe is a Senior Lecturer in Sociology at The University of Edinburgh. His research in India focuses on the sociopolitical mobilisation of Dalits and their struggle to achieve equality and deepen Indian democracy. He is the author of Untouchable Citizens (SAGE 2005) and multiple articles on caste, Dalit politics and violence.

Roger Jeffery is a Professor of Sociology of South Asia at The University of Edinburgh. His research has covered public health policy, social demography and pharmaceuticals regulation. He is the University’s Dean International (India), Director of the India Institute and President of the European Association of South Asian Studies. He has recently edited (with Craig Jeffrey and Jens Lerche) Development Failure and Identity Politics in Uttar Pradesh (SAGE 2014) and (with Oliver Heath) Change and Diversity: Economics, Politics and Society in Contemporary India (OUP 2010). He is the author and co-author of numerous books including most recently Education, Masculinities and Unemployment in North India (with Craig Jeffrey and Patricia Jeffery, Social Science Press 2010).

Suryakant Waghmore is Associate Professor and Chairperson at the Centre for Social Justice and Governance, TISS, Mumbai. He is author of Civility Against Caste (SAGE 2013). His current research focuses on changing forms of caste etiquette in modern India.

Bibliographic information

• Title: From the Margins to the Mainstream: Institutionalising Minorities in South Asia
• Editors: Hugo Gorringe, Roger Jeffery, Suryakant Waghmore
• Publisher: SAGE Publications, 2016
• ISBN: 935150624X, 9789351506249
• Length: 332 pages
• Subjects: Political Science / General