India

1
India
2
Indian Administrative Structure
3
Basics

• Over 1 Billion people
• Opening to the world economically since 1991
• Importance of the US-Indian-Chinese relationship
  in the future

4
Paradox One

• Largest democracy in the World
• But
• Economic inequality
• Social inequality (due to lingering Hindu caste
  system)

5
Paradox Two

• Religion 80 Hindu
• But a national ideology of separation of church
  and state
• But the Bharatiya Janata party tired to put more
  Hindu nationalism or Hindutva in politics
• And failed
• The ideology were all Indians, see the next
  slides for examples

6
Current Prime Minister

• Manmohan Singh
• The first Sikh PM
• From Congress Party

7
Leader of Congress Party(currently in power)

• Sonja Gandhi
• Roman Catholic
• Born in Italy

8
Past Three Presidents of India

• First Untouchable Pres. First Muslim
  Pres. First Woman Pres.

9
Paradox Three

• East Asian Model Authoritarian and capitalist
• India Democratic with a socialist economy (until
  1991 when economic reforms began)

10
Paradox Four The Economy

• Software designers, engineers and 80 of the
  population is still farming budding Middle class
  and 300 million living below poverty line
• Bangalore
• Indias Silicon Valley Slums of any city

11
Paradox Five Diversity

• 80 Hindu, but
• 22 Official languages now
• Over 130 million Muslims (the nation in the world
  with the third largest Muslim population)

12
Paradox Six National vs. Regional Parties

• Three national parties
• Congress Party
• BJP
• Communist Party Marxist (sort of a national
  party, but not a major party)
• And over two dozen regional parties with
  representation in the Parliament form only one
  Indian state
• See the Chart

13
History

• Colonialism 18th-20th century by British
• Independence movement
• Indian National Congress (1885)

14
Mohandas Gandhis New Strategy for INC

• Independence NOW
• Non-Violence
• Mass Movement

15
A Complication Hindu Caste System

• Priests Brahmins
• Warriors Kahtriyas
• Landowners/merchants Vaishyas
• Small Farmers Sudras
• Outcastes, sub-castes, backward tribes, and
  Untouchables
• How do you build a unified mass movement and a
  democracy with such social segregation?

16
Independence

• India and Pakistan

17
Still Fighting over Kashmir

• Territory claimed by
• both India and Pakistan
• wars in 1947, 1965,
• 1971, almost 1986,
• 1990, 1999

18
Parliamentary System Bicameral

• Rajya Sabha Upper House Council of States 250
  seats
• 238 seats selected by state assemblies and 12
  appointed by President six year terms

19
Lok Sabha

• Lok Sabha Lower House House of the People 545
  seats 273 The magic number to elect a PM
• Lok Sabha chooses the Prime Minister PM run the
  government
• 5 year terms
• 79 seats for untouchables
• 40 for backward tribes
• 2 for Anglo-Indians (nominated by Pres.)

20
Parliamentary Process for PM

• PM and House
• serve full term
• Party
• wins
• majority House PM PM dies or
• General elects takes resigns
• election PM office
• of Lower
• House
• No party wins No Confidence
  fails majority motion
• passes
• Parties negotiate PM dissolves
• to form coalition House
• (50 of seats, plus one)

21
Major Political Parties Congress Party

• Nehru Dynasty 1947-1991
• Jawaharlal Nehru Indira Gandhi Rajiv Gandhi
• PM 1947-64 PM 1966-77, 80-84 PM 1984-89

22
Congress Party Ideology

• Commitment to Democracy and equality
• Secular church/state separation
• Ending caste system
• Affirmative action for caste and minorities
• Socialist economics state control of economic
  life
• Non-alignment in foreign policy

23
Bhratiya Janata Party BJP

• 1984 election 2 seats in Lok Sabha
• 1996 election -- 160 seats (largest party in Lok
  Sabha)
• In power 1998-2004

24
BJP Ideology

• Hindutva Hindu Nationalism
• Promotion of Hindu ideas
• Leans toward protectionism
• Critical of Congress Party for relying on votes
  of Muslims
• Self-reliance for India
• India as a world power
• India as nuclear weapons-capable state

25
Economic Policy

• 1947-1991 Command Economy
• State control of economic life
• National Planning Commission
• Result Poverty

26
Late 1980s-Early 1990s Economic Crisis

• Massive debt
• Crushing Poverty
• Dependence on foreign oil (price rise)
• Dependence on discounted military equipment from
  USSR discount ends

27
Reforms Begin Congress Party

• Nehru Dynasty over
• 1991 Reforms
• PM P.V, Narasimha Rao, 1991-96

• Finance Minister Manmohan Singh

28
The Reforms

• Open up economy to foreign investment
• Privatization
• Ending government control of economy
• Reduce government regulation
• Export Processing Zones

29
Result of Reforms

• Flow of foreign investment
• Economy Booming
• India judged to be a rising world power
• Congress Party loses in 1996
• Fear of foreign competition
• Loss of jobs
• Government employees losing jobs
• BJP becomes major party by criticizing reforms

30
1990s-Present

• BJP vs. Congress Party
• BJP in power 1998-2004 allied with at least a
  dozen regional parties to get past 273 votes
  National Democratic Alliance
• 2004-present Congress Party in power allied with
  at least a dozen regional parties to get past
  273 United Progressive Alliance

31
2004 Election

• Surprise Victory for Congress Party
• Criticized its own economic reforms for not
  helping poor enough
• Leader of Party Sonia Gandhi, widow of Rajiv
• New PM Manmohan Singh