Articles by Ram Puniyani

Pratibha Patil, while calling for an end to the purdah system, very laudable advice, falls into the trap of popular perception that this system was introduced to protect women from the invading Mughals. The reality is, of course, quite different.

Communalism Communalism in Indian Politics by Rajni Kothari; Rainbow Publishers, Delhi, 1998; Price Rs 245 (hard bound).
RAM PUNIYANI The lopsided growth of Indian society has run through diverse channels during the last 50 years. While on one side the rise of substantial elite and middle classes has accompanied the economic policies pursued by the state, on the other side it has also resulted in marginalisation, deprivation and pauperisation of a vast chunk of rural and urban poor. The complex phenomenon of democratic and urban processes has not unfolded itself completely with the result that the oppressed and the exploited have also seen an attack on their potential democratic space. It is against this backdrop that Rajni Kothari traces the trajectory of the Indian state, the downfall of Congress, the rise of elite and middle classes and the growth of the communal virus in our society.