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Applying an intercultural and comparative theoretical approach across Asia and Africa, this book analyses the rise and moderation of political movements in developing societies which mobilise popular support with references to conceptions of cultural identity. The author includes not only the Hindu nationalist movement but also many Islamist political movements in a single category - New Cultural Identitarian Political Movements (NCIPM). Demonstrating significant similarities in the pattern of evolution between these and European Christian Democracy, the book provides an instrument for the analysis of these movements outside the parameters of the fundamentalism debate.
The book looks at a number of key variables for understanding the evolution of NCIPM, and it goes on to analyse the transition of developing societies from rent-based political economies to capitalism and the (partial) failure of this transition process. It argues that there is a need to incorporate economic and class analysis in the study of political processes in developing societies against the continuing emphasis on cultural factors associated with the "cultural turn" of social sciences. The book is an interesting contribution to studies in South Asian Politics, as well as Comparative Politics.
List of contents
Foreword: New Cultural Identitarian Political Movements in a Global Perspective Hartmut Elsenhans 1. Introduction 2. The Theoretical Framework: The Concept of New Cultural Identitarian Political Movements (NCIPM) 3. Context: Politics in India 4. Ideology and Political Practice of Hindu Nationalism 5. The Rise of the BJP 6. The BJP at the Regional and at the Local Level 7. The Changing Face of the BJP 8. Conclusion: The BJP as a New Cultural Identitarian Political Movement
About the author
Sebastian Schwecke teaches South Asian Politics at the Centre for Modern Indian Studies (CeMIS), University of Göttingen, Germany.
