World Politics Class Notes and Reading Summaries (2024) Extensive and Detailed: Part 2/2 including Weeks 6-12

World Politics
Course Notes February – May 2024
Professor: Jonathan Holslag
Each week includes:
- Lecture notes from slides and own handwritten notes
o Graphs and other relevant visuals from slides
- Readings summaries
- Reflections, takeaways, and conclusions
- Questions (if applicable)

Legend:
- Grey text: own research done to supplement information on slides. Not mentioned in class, but to provide
context/understanding of slides.
- Grey highlighting: on slides, but not discussed in class.
- **EXAM QUESTION**: to point out Holslag’s points of interest and specific exam-testables
- Bolded text: highly emphasised points/conclusions



Week 6 Global South – India
Lecture:
6. 1 Introduction:
- Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) – the biggest boy scout movement on earth
o Of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) main Hindu political party
 Right-wing Hindu nationalist
o Displays Modi’s commitment to return of Hinduism to India
 Hindu nationalism returns as “social glue” again central to Indian politics
 In contrast to secular, multi-ethnic India it once was
 Historically used inclusive nationalism
o Now a threat to minorities in India Difficult to reconcile this position with commitments
to opening its economy to the much-needed foreign investment
 Exclusionary policies become off-putting to investors
- “Lotus in a Mud Pond” of the Global South
o Image that the government asserts on the global stage
o Not an easy environment, but not yet looming
 Surrounded by regional tensions and nuclear power tensions
- Thus, how do we assess the capacity of this Hindu national government to rise to the position of
a power?


6.1 Policy Organisation
- “Merely saying that democracy will solve all problems is utterly wrong. Problems are solved by
intelligence and hard work." – Jawaharlal Nehru (1947)
o Founding prime minister of India

, o Aware of benefits of democracy, but thought that it requires more than just having it
institutionally, to preserve it and let it be helpful
o Today, some practical issues with Indian elections
 Dispersed rural and unconnected societies without infrastructure
 1.4 million people
 Fragmented and paternalistic society
 Women can vote, but often only in theory
o Overall, Indians are proud and take democracy seriously
 Historical culture of debate
- Historically, many of the states of India have been quite autonomous
o Unconnected and divided regions
o Clear north-south divide, where the BGB is much less influential in the south
 North = Hinduism and high population
 South = Muslim
o Modi works towards more centralisation today
- Draupadi Murmu
o President of India (2022-current)
 Largely symbolic role
 In charge of state protocol
 Head of State, head of executive
 Constitutionally must sign off on things
 Historically, presidents can act independently or as more of a rubber
stamp
o First Indigenous political leader
 Modi called this a “watershed moment for the poor, marginalised, and
downtrodden”
- Narendra Modi
o Prime Minister (2014-current)
 Holds real power
 For example, would hold the control over a nuclear power
 Leader of parliament, representative in executive
 Legislative
 Executive authority despite president as nominal head
- Foreign policy organisation:
o President
 Murmu: symbolic power
o Prime Minister
 Modi: significant power
 Heads Cabinet (Executive)
 Advised by
o National Security Council (NSC)
 NSA Board
 National Security Advisor (NSA) is chairman
o Joint Economic Council (says JEIC on slides but internet tells
me there is no such thing)
o In principle, must hold confidence of the lower house
 Cabinet ministers head ministries/committees:

, o Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and Committee on
Economic Affairs
 Both follow strong bureaucratic culture
 Strong diplomatic power in world
 Powerful entities
o Ministry of Commerce (MOC)
o Ministry of Defence (MOD)
o Committee on Security
 Parliament (Legislature)
 Two levels
o Rajya Sabha – upper house
 Appointed by president and elected by the people
 Permanent, with six-year terms
o Lok Sabha – lower house
 Elected by the people
 Can be dissolved
 Standing Committees
 on External Affairs
 on Defence
 Both have significant influence
o Because of press and the importance of
the public image
 Think tanks, industry, and
public opinion
o Desire to project hard stances to public
sets tones of the debate
o Press is still largely free, but Modi is
lessening that
 Think Tanks have much less
voice and access than
historically
o Is a less industrialised country, so the
few conglomerate companies are very
powerful
 5-10 wealth families
 Increasingly incorporated into
the BJP
 States
 Have own powers, including over external affairs
6.2 History
Graph showing degree of
dynastic control over
Indian land throughout
history

, - Interesting for two reasons: who was in power? And how much power did they have?
o Dynastic control:
 Maurya: Indigenous dynasty which provided the origin of a lot of Indian
mindset/thought
 Kushan: imperial dynasty, non-native
 Delhi Sultanate: central Asian and native dynasty
 Mughal: central Asian dynasty
 Aurangzeb (1658-1707) as emperor
o “Conqueror of the World”
 All alien control in India’s history is being ignored
in today’s view
 They focus on Maurya
o Indian unity is not a given
 Fragmented and competing states
 Even during height of Maurya dynasty
 Rival city states
- Need for strategic thinking and understanding of India as a geopolitical axis of insecurity
o Khyber-Karakoram Pass is the most vulnerable place
 Most important focus strategically
 Big existential threats to India come through here from the North
 E.g. central Asian conquerors
 Most populous region
 Horseshoe of India: northern plateau
 Because of these threats, we can understand India’s focus to this region,
Kashmir, and Afghanistan in its policies today
o Arabian Sea
 Competition with trading states from the west
 Because existential in the 15th and 16th centuries
 Threat from Portuguese, Dutch, and British
o Bay of Bengal
 Centre of two huge economic blocs
 Natural bridge between subcontinent and eastern regions and coast of China
 Historical movements of people, goods, and ideas
o Natu La Pass
 NE cluster of independent states, historically
 Now a threat from China
 Arunashel Pradesh as contested territory, now in Indian control
o Palk
 Tamil population borders here
 India and Sri Lanka
 During Sri Lankan civil war, Tamil’s struggled and traded here
o Laccadive Sea
 Was very important for British trade