Indian Federalism

Structure, Process and Agency
1. Auflage 2026
ISBN: 978-1-032-45549-5
Verlag: Routledge

Buch, Englisch, 246 Seiten, Format (B × H): 161 mm x 240 mm, Gewicht: 540 g

Reihe: Routledge Studies in Federalism and Decentralization

Indian Federalism: Structure, Process and Agency offers a comprehensive and critical account of Indian Federalism, its origin, development, structural, innovations and functioning, and resilience in the face of new challenges.

Federalism in India is a relative success story as a model of governance of a complex multi-ethnic country. This book provides a detailed examination of the structures of Indian federalism with particular focus on the core structures such as tiers of government, constitutional distribution of powers, parliamentary second chamber, Supreme Court, Finance Commission (fiscal federalism and federal asymmetry) and Inter-State Council. Each discussion is preceded by the constitutional designs and functions. The issues covered in this book are territorial accommodation of ethnic identity; power-sharing; centripetalism and state autonomy; changing political economy from a command economy to a market driven one; special significance of the major transformation in the party systems for federalism; and the new meaning of centre-state relations in the shifting patty systems and the political economy.

This book will be of interest to advanced undergraduates and postgraduates as a core text on Indian federalism, and a necessary reference for the students and researchers of comparative federalism, and Indian politics, globally speaking.

Zielgruppe

Academic, Postgraduate, and Undergraduate Advanced

Autoren/Hrsg.

Bhattacharyya, Harihar

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Politikwissenschaft Allgemein

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Introduction 1. Conceptual issues in comparative federalism 2. Origin and development of federalism in India: Colonialism, nationalism and decolonization 3. Structural dimensions of Indian federalism 4. Centre-state relations in India since the 1900s 5. Fiscal federalism in India and cultural diversity: Role of the finance commission 6. Role of the Supreme Court in Indian federalism 7. Federalism and democracy in India 8. Federalism, centralization and decentralization in India 9. Asymmetries in Indian Federalism 10. Indian federalism and political parties 11. Contentious issues of Indian federalism Conclusion

Über Autor(innen)

Harihar Bhattacharyya was formerly Professor of Political Science at the University of Burdwan, West Bengal, India. Previously he taught at Delhi University, the Heidelberg University (South Asia Institute), Hull University (UK) and the Institute of Federalism, Fribourg, where he was a Visiting Research Professor (1998-99) for one year to draft a book on a comparative study of Indian and Swiss federalism. Widely globally travelled, Bhattacharyya also takes part in ethnic conflict resolution and constitution making for transitional states. His recent publications include Asymmetric Federalism in India: Ethnicity, Development and Governance (2022); Federalism in Asia: India, Pakistan, Malaysia, Nepal and Myanmar, 2nd ed. (2021); and Radical Political and Governance in India’s North East: The Case of Tripura (2018). He is also the recipient of the Publius Distinguished Scholar Award (2025).