Politicization of Universities in a Postcolonial Context: A Historical Sketch of Student Political Activism in India

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5007/2175-7976.2022.e84909

Keywords:

India, Student Politics, Nation-Building

Abstract

This paper examines the nature and historical trajectories of student politics in India. In doing so, it seeks to centrally carry forward the argument that students represent a powerful and informed political agency, motivated along the axes of either ushering large scale changes or in addressing minor campus issues. It also seeks to lay out the background and dissects the factors that have led to the beginnings, decline and resurgence of student movements in postcolonial societies, particularly in India wherein the contribution of youth or students towards nation-building via activism or participation in mainstream politics can hardly be discounted. While the 1960s did give rise to student movements globally, this paper centrally argues that it has been an intrinsic feature in the Indian context for almost a century now, both before and after Independence from colonial rule and thereby concludes with the idea that universities have been integral to such developments within such a milieu. 

References

ADVANI, Rahul. Youth and politics in India-I. ISAS Working Paper. Singapore, n. 173, p. 1-17, 2013a. Available at: https://www.isas.nus.edu.sg/papers/173-youth-andpolitics-in-india-i/. Accessed: August 25. 2018.

ADVANI, Rahul. Youth and politics in India-II. ISAS Working Paper. Singapore, n. 174, p. 1-22, 2013b. Available at: https://www.isas.nus.edu.sg/papers/174-youth-andpolitics-in-india-ii/. Accessed: August 25. 2018.

ALTBACH, Philip. G. Student Politics and Higher Education in India. Daedalus, Massachusetts, v. 97, n. 1, p. 254-273, 1968.

ALTBACH, Philip. G. Student politics in the Third World. Higher Education, Berlin, n. 13, p. 635-655, 1984.

ALTBACH, Philip. G. Higher Education in the Third World: Themes and Variations. New Delhi: Radiant Publishers, 1987.

ALTBACH, Philip. G. At Large Student Power: Politics and Revolution. Change, London, v. 31, n. 5, p. 52-57, 1999.

ANDERSEN, Walter; PANT, Alok. Student Politics at Allahabad University-I. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 5, no. 23, p. 910-916, 1970.

BETEILLE, Andre. Classes and communities. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 42, no. 11, p. 945-952, 2007.

BHUSHAN, Sudhanshu. Public university in a democracy. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 51, no. 17, p. 35-40, 2016.

CHATTERJEE, Partha. Freedom of Speech in the University. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 51, n. 11, p. 35-37, 2016.

DEKA, Kaustubh. Youth Activism and Democratic Politics in India’s Northeast: 2014 Election in Perspective. The Hindu Centre, Delhi, n. 14, p. 1-113, 2015.

DESHPANDE, Satish. Caste and Castelessness. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 48, n. 15, p. 32-39, 2013a.

DESHPANDE, Satish. Caste Quotas and Formal Inclusion in Indian Higher Education. In: DESHPANDE, Satish; ZACHARIAS, Usha (ed.). Beyond Inclusion: The Practice of Equal Access in Indian Higher Education. New Delhi: Routledge, 2013b. p. 13-47.

DESHPANDE, Satish. The Public University after Rohith-Kanhaiya. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 51, n. 11, p. 32-34, 2016.

GARALYTĖ, Kristina. Dalit Counterpublic and Social Space on Indian Campuses.

CASTE: A Global Journal on Social Exclusion, Massachusetts. v. 1, n. 2, p. 135-156, 2020.

HARRISS, John. Youth and ‘Refo-lution’? Protest Politics in India and the Global Context. Simons Papers in Security and Development, 34, p. 1-23, 2014.

HAZARY, Subas C. Protest Politics of Student Youth in India. The Indian Journal of Political Science, Delhi, v. 49, n. 1, p. 105-120, 1988.

JAYARAM, Narayana. Sadhus no Longer: Recent Trends in Indian Student Activism. Higher Education, Berlin, v. 8, no. 6, p. 683-699, 1979.

JAYARAM, Narayana. Sociology of Education in India. New Delhi: Rawat Books, 1990.

JEFFREY, Craig. Timepass: Youth, Class, and the Politics of Waiting in India. New Delhi: Cambridge University Press, 2012.

KRISHNAN, Kavita. Student movements in the time of liberalization. Seminar, New Delhi, n. 624, 2011.

KUMAR, Sanjay. Indian Youth and Electoral Politics: An Emerging Engagement. New Delhi: Sage Publications, 2014.

KUMAR, Udaya. The University and its Outside. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 51, n. 11, p. 29-31, 2016.

LUKOSE, Ritty. Empty citizenship: Protesting Politics in the Era of Globalization. Cultural Anthropology, Virginia, v. 20, n. 4, p. 506-533, 2005.

LUKOSE, Ritty. Liberalization’s Children: Gender, Youth and Consumer Citizenship in Globalizing India. Hyderabad: Orient Blackswan, 2010.

MARTELLI, Jean-Thomas; GARALYTĖ, Kristina. How Campuses Mediate a Nationwide Upsurge against India’s Communalization. An Account from Jamia Millia Islamia and Shaheen Bagh in New Delhi. South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal (SAMAJ), Paris, v. 22, p. 1-9, 2019.

MAZUMDAR, Surajit. The Post-Independence History of Student Movements in India and the Ongoing Protests. Postcolonial Studies, London, v. 22, n. 1, p. 16-29, 2019.

MENON, Nivedita; NIGAM, Aditya. Power and Contestation: India Since 1989. London: Zed Books, 2007.

MOHANTY, Manoranjan. People’s Movements and the Anna Upsurge. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 46, n. 38, p. 16-19, 2011.

NAIR, Janaki. The Provocations of the Public University. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 52, n. 37, p. 34-41, 2017.

OOMMEN, Tharailath K. Student Politics in India: The Case of Delhi University. Asian Survey, Chicago, v. 14, n. 9, p. 777-794, 1974.

OOMMEN, Tharailath K. ‘Twentieth Century Indian Society in Retrospect’ In: VOHRA, Narinder N.; BHATTACHARYA, Sabyasachi (eds.) Looking Back: India in the Twentieth Century. New Delhi: National Book Trust, 2002.

OOMMEN, Tharailath K. Social Movements II: Concerns of Equity and Security. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2010.

PALSHIKAR, Sanjay; PATNAIK, Arun K. Violence in a university: Defending the indefensible. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 37, n. 16, p. 1490-1491, 2002.

PATHANIA, Gaurav J. The University as a Site of Resistance: Identity and Student Politics. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2018.

RAY, Anil Baran. Students and Politics in India: The Role of Caste, Language and Region in an Indian University. Delhi: Manohar, 1977.

RUDOLPH, Lloyd; RUDOLPH, Susanne; AHMAD, Karuna. Student Politics and National Politics in India. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 6, n. 30-32, p. 1655-1668, 1971.

RUDOLPH, Lloyd; RUDOLPH, Susanne. (ed.) Education and Politics in India. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1972.

SHAH, Ghanshyam. Revolution, Reform, or Protest? a study of the Bihar Movement: III. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 12, n. 17, p. 695-702, 1977.

SHAH, Ghanshyam. Social Movements in India: A Review of Literature. New Delhi: Sage Publications, 2004.

SITAPATI, Vinay. What Anna Hazare’s Movement and India’s New Middle Classes Say about Each Other. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 46, n. 30, p. 39-44, 2011.

TELTUMBDE, Anand. Occupy Movement and India. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 46, n. 51, p. 10-11, 2011.

VISVANATHAN, Shiv. Democracy, Plurality and Indian University. Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, v. 35, n. 40, p. 3597-3606, 2000.

Downloads

Published

2022-09-01

How to Cite

Sinha, S. (2022). Politicization of Universities in a Postcolonial Context: A Historical Sketch of Student Political Activism in India. Esboços: Histories in Global Contexts, 29(51), 232–252. https://doi.org/10.5007/2175-7976.2022.e84909

Issue

Section

Special Issue "University and politics: actors, conflicts and global views"