The role of state government in the United States political system has been dynamic, complex, and hotly debated since the former British colony declared independence in 1776. Founded and developed as individual colonies, the states entered a loose union under the Articles of Confederation during the War of Independence and remained nearly autonomous until the United States Constitution was ratified in 1789. The Constitution sought to form a “more perfect union” by establishing a federal government which could “provide for the common defense and promote the general welfare” of its citizens much better than each state could on its own…
Throughout time, foreign affairs throughout the world have been the stage for many great conflicts. Most recently, in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, we have seen a great shift of power. Politically, economically, and religiously these shifts have created great conflicts. From both World Wars, to the Cold War, to now the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the world has undergone changes and these conflicts have adjusted more than just borders, rather than our outlook on our world in which we live. To many, such as Francis Fukuyama, the end to world history and struggles is essentially over. However, to others, including men such as Samuel P. Huntington, the world has just begun to see the horizon of great civilizational conflicts.…
In June 1948, the infant Indian State looked very fragile indeed. It was pierced from the left by the Communists, and pinched from the right by the Hindu extremists. And there were other problems aplenty. Eight million…
The term nation has been envisioned variously by primordialists and modernists and is enmeshed in bewildering contradictions. In this paper it has been used to mean “ . . . not so much a cultural artifact . . . but a web of material relations and practices, which rests on classes, caste structures, gendered systems of production and reproduction, armies, laws, territories and yes, signifying practices as well.” (Ahmad 2007:40) The establishment of India as a nation-state upon Indian sub-continent not only conferred the people living within its political boundary a new overarching national identity of being ‘Indians’ above other ‘fuzzy’ identities based on caste, class, community but also brought in its wake the catastrophe of Partition that made the exclusionist and territorial aspects of nation-state quite evident. Sudipta Kaviraj in “The Imaginary Institution of India” explicates the idea of territorial demarcation of boundaries of the modern- nation state, as an imperative condition for enumerating its subjects in the process of nation formation for the purpose of administration and control. He also purports the…
radical struggles arose by the people of Telangana region. Since 1946 growing out of oppressive and…
Democracy is the focal point of the Indian political system, but is often constrained by social tensions due to religious, caste and linguistic differences. Some of the communal flare-ups—such as Babri Masjid in 1992, Godhra in 2002, and the large exodus of India’s northeastern migrants from the southern cities in 2012 due to fear of attacks by Muslims— have rocked the whole country in the past. In 2013, the country again witnessed communal riots between Jat Hindus and Muslims in the town of Muzaffarnagar (located in the state of Uttar Pradesh), which has been deemed as ―the worst instance of political violence in the country in the last decade‖. In addition, the government’s assent to the creation of a new state of Telangana in southern India has brought intensified demands for new states in other parts of the country,…
Contents [hide] * 1 History * 2 The pre-independence era * 3 The post-independence era * 3.1 Jawaharlal Nehru * 4 Indira Gandhi * 5 The post-Indira era * 6 Indian Prime Ministers from the Congress Party * 7 Controversies and criticisms * 7.1 1947 - anti-Godse riots * 7.2 1975-1977 - State of Emergency * 7.3 1984 anti-Sikh riots * 7.3.1 Rajiv Gandhi 's remarks * 7.3.2 Allegations of conspiracy and cover-ups * 7.4 Charges for bidding for seats * 8 Formation of present Government of India * 9 Policies and programmes * 9.1 Social policy * 9.2 Economic policy * 9.3 Foreign policy * 10 Internal organization * 11 Congress in various states * 12 List of current Congress Chief Ministers * 13 List of presidents of the party * 14 2009 general elections * 15 See also * 16 References *…
Abstract: The Panchayati Raj is an indigenous and time-honoured concept in our country. Panchayats as traditional institutions were seen in India as almost sacred with their Panchas (members) referred to as ‘Panch Parmeshwar’ (member as God) with expectations of fairness and justice in their role of settlement of local interpersonal and community disputes. The genesis of the new panchayats can be traced to the attempts made in colonial India. The State of Jammu and Kashmir (J & K) has its own unique history as far as Panchayati Raj is concerned. In Jammu and Kashmir, the Panchayati Raj institutions are established under the Jammu & Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act, 1989. The Panchayati Raj Act, 1992-popularly known as 73rd amendment-was enacted in the country to revitalise the Panchayati Raj. However, the provisions of 73rd amendment were not extended to the State owing to the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under article 370. Although the State government has adopted various provisions of 73rd amendment but still the Jammu & Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act, 1989 has many loopholes.…
One of special features of the Union of India is that the union is indestructible but the power conferred on Parliament includes the power to form a new state or union territory by uniting a part of any State or Union territory to other State or Union territory. The identity of States can be altered or even expunged by the Parliament. The Constituent Assembly declined a motion in concluding stages to designate India as '' Federation of States''.…
After the death of Sriramulu, reluctant Nehru was forced to accede to the various cries from other parts of the country with similar demands. In 1954, a States Reorganization Committee was formed with Fazal Ali as its head, which recommended the formation of 16 new states and 3 Union Territories based on the language people spoke in those respective regions. This heralded a new phase in the Indian politics. The subsequent movements for separate states and territories gave birth to slew of regional parties which eventually became prominent in national level and thus started coalition culture in Indian politics.…
In the Constitution, India is proclaimed as a ‘Union of States’ rather than as a federal State. The distribution of powers between the Union and the States makes them subordinate to the Centre.…
| 1. Starting point is IGNOU MPS 003 India democracy and Development. 2. Then there is Decent material scattered in IGNOU Sociology, political science and Public Administration (BA, MA).…
The most important responsibility of NITI Aayog related to promoting is “…cooperative federalism through structured support initiatives and mechanisms with the States on a continuous basis”. The legislative domains and functional responsibilities of the union and states are democrated by the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India in terms of union, state and concurrent subjects. However, there are overlaps in the functions which require coordination between the union and the states and among the states inter se. Carrying out a stable and sustainable developmental agenda mandates fostering the spirit of cooperation and cementing the federal structure.…
Andhra Pradesh appears to be a source of never ending tamasha and the scheduled elections for Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council is the latest source of entertainment for most us. The elections seem to be giving nightmares to every mainstream political party. There are allegations of cross voting, horse trading, political match fixing, poaching and it is rumored that political parties are spending crores of rupees for every seat in the Legislative Council. The Jagan factor, crisis in the Congress party and the fielding of a candidate by the TRS have mitigated the crisis further.…
The Introduction to the Act says that it has been enacted to assist State Governments which were incapable to maintain internal disturbance. However the act has been widely criticized by national and international human rights agencies. When United Nations Human Rights Committee questioned the validity of AFSPA in 1991 under Indian Law and in light of Article 4 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Indian Govt. harped on the fact that it is necessary to prevent the secession of the North Eastern states. A brief recap of history will tell us that these states were forcefully made a part of the Indian Republic after 1947 by signing various agreements with a view of their strategic significance. These states could never be fully integrated in our country’s mainstream due to vast differences in social structure, culture, language, facial features and geographical remoteness. Furthermore, the government…