02/09/2024
Press Note
“Stringent laws and the thirst for ‘effective action’ are misleadingly understood as characteristics of a ‘strong state’. Not just actual use of bulldozers but many high-handed practices mark contemporary governance. This is closely connected to the authoritarian moment in our politics”, pointed out prominent political scientist and columnist, Prof. Suhas Palshikar while delivering the 23rd Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer Memorial Lecture on 30th August, 2024. The Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer Memorial Lecture was organized by the Centre for Study of Society and Secularism (CSSS) and was chaired by Kumar Ketkar, former member of Parliament and eminent journalist. Further, Prof. Palshikar, during the lecture made linkages between this development in governance and circumcision of citizens freedoms.
Prof. Palshikar cautioned that this trend may not be restricted to the BJP regimes alone but other governments and political elites too engage in this kind of governance. He said, “Many BJP governments flaunt proudly their effectiveness in employing the hard state strategy. But I suspect that that BJP is not alone in this approach and other parties too are quite fond of this manner of governance. In this sense, the affliction of bulldozer is a rulership strategy liked by and followed by much of India’s political elite. Therefore, there is a clamor for new laws every time a gruesome crime occurs and there are arguments in favor strong action which ends up having poor, marginalized and the minorities at the receiving end most often”.
The chair of this lecture, Kumar Ketkar, added that this trend challenges democracy in India and augurs ill for democratic institutions which have witnessed steady erosion in the last few years. Prof. Palshikar in the end, posed questions about the future of the Indian democracy. He questioned, “what is the connection between this phenomenon and democratic practice in India? How does this play out both for acceptance of populist politics and the rise of populist leadership? Does populist leadership produce conditions for acceptance of bulldozer governance?”.
The Lecture was attended over 150 participants which included academics, students and social activists from Mumbai. In the past, the Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer Memorial Lectures were delivered by prominent academicians and scholars including, Prof. Romila Thapar, Prof. Christophe Jaffrelot, Prof. Harbans Mukhia, Prof. Irfan Habib. Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer was a celebrated Islamic scholar and a pioneer social activist who documented important communal riots.
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