Party Politics, Volume 29, Issue 5, Page 829-839, September 2023.
Far-right and populist right-wing political parties have garnered significant scholarly attention in recent years. They have acquired importance also in European political institutions such as the European Parliament (EP). We explore this issue by focusing on the European Conservatives and Reformists’ (ECR) group in the EP. We analyse its current and former main national party delegations – the British Conservative Party, the Polish Law and Justice Party, and the Brothers of Italy – and unpack the ideological underpinnings of ‘conservative’ positions of the ECR group. How is ‘conservatism’ constructed in the EP? What role does gender play in these constructions? Significantly, we locate gender equality as a key area, crucial to the identity of what it means to be a conservative party in Europe today. We combine the analysis of ECR political programs with interview and ethnographic data. The article contributes to both the study of European Union (EU) politics and to research on national conservative parties.
Who rules the deliberative party? Examining the Agora case in Belgium
Party Politics, Volume 29, Issue 5, Page 940-951, September 2023.
In recent years, pessimism about plebiscitary intra-party democracy has been challenged by assembly-based models of intra-party democracy. However, research has yet to explore the emergence of new power dynamics in parties originating from the implementation of deliberative practices in their intra-party democracy. We investigate how deliberative democratization reshuffles power relations within political parties through a case study of Agora, an internally deliberative movement party in Belgium. Employing a process-tracing approach using original interview and participant observation data, we argue that while plebiscitary intra-party democracy shifts power towards passive members prone to elite domination, our case suggests that deliberative intra-party democracy shifts power towards active members that are more likely to be critical of elites.
In recent years, pessimism about plebiscitary intra-party democracy has been challenged by assembly-based models of intra-party democracy. However, research has yet to explore the emergence of new power dynamics in parties originating from the implementation of deliberative practices in their intra-party democracy. We investigate how deliberative democratization reshuffles power relations within political parties through a case study of Agora, an internally deliberative movement party in Belgium. Employing a process-tracing approach using original interview and participant observation data, we argue that while plebiscitary intra-party democracy shifts power towards passive members prone to elite domination, our case suggests that deliberative intra-party democracy shifts power towards active members that are more likely to be critical of elites.
Book review: Akhila Naik, Bheda (Translated by Raj Kumar)
Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Ahead of Print.
Akhila Naik, Bheda (Translated by Raj Kumar) (Oxford University Press, 2017), 108 pp. ₹495 (paperback). ISBN-13:978-0-19-947607-7
Akhila Naik, Bheda (Translated by Raj Kumar) (Oxford University Press, 2017), 108 pp. ₹495 (paperback). ISBN-13:978-0-19-947607-7
Formation of the Valmiki Heritage: Making Sense of Dalit Cultural Assertion in Punjab
Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Ahead of Print.
This article seeks to understand the agenda of the government of Punjab behind the recent construction of the cultural heritage of sant/guru Valmiki which is attracting a sizable population of the Dalit community known as Balmikis in the state. In this context, the article explores the historical role of the Adi-Dharam Samaj, an anti-caste reformist movement by the Balmiki community. This movement has adopted various new modes and strategies to mobilize the community. It also subscribes to the philosophy of Ad Dharm to define a separate religious identity for Dalits, especially the Balmiki community separate from Hindus and Sikhs. It has also adopted a distinct path of ensuring Dalit social mobility without following the dominant modes like Sanskritization and conversion. The making of Dalit cultural heritage is a significant development in a realm that explores the extremely marginalized community within Dalits, and their attempt at identity articulation and assertion in contemporary Punjab.
This article seeks to understand the agenda of the government of Punjab behind the recent construction of the cultural heritage of sant/guru Valmiki which is attracting a sizable population of the Dalit community known as Balmikis in the state. In this context, the article explores the historical role of the Adi-Dharam Samaj, an anti-caste reformist movement by the Balmiki community. This movement has adopted various new modes and strategies to mobilize the community. It also subscribes to the philosophy of Ad Dharm to define a separate religious identity for Dalits, especially the Balmiki community separate from Hindus and Sikhs. It has also adopted a distinct path of ensuring Dalit social mobility without following the dominant modes like Sanskritization and conversion. The making of Dalit cultural heritage is a significant development in a realm that explores the extremely marginalized community within Dalits, and their attempt at identity articulation and assertion in contemporary Punjab.
Motherhood and Child Healthcare Experiences Among a Unique PVTG of West Bengal, India: A Case of Tradition, Transition and Transformation for the Sake of Existence
Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Ahead of Print.
All over the world and, moreover, in the developing countries like India, women experience threats to their lives, health and well-being are also overburdened with work and lack power and influence; further, the situation is vulnerable among the marginalized segment. A unique PVTG of the northern part of West Bengal is struggling for its very existence through the life experiences of motherhood and childcare practices. It is noticed that most often they follow the age-old traditions while not completely unaware of the modern biomedical procedures. The lack of accessibility makes them less confident towards the latter. A typical state of transition is evident, although their conceptions regarding the pregnancy, delivery and childcare practices are not significantly hyper-medicalized. Rather a continuous existence of humanization of birth process is being practised. The article explores the conspicuous women participation and significant roles in the entire health-seeking behaviour in connection to pregnancy, childbirth and related health care issues. Furthermore, the entire discourse also elucidates the state of motherhood and its intrinsic decision-making behaviour in order to retain the economic viability of the population.
All over the world and, moreover, in the developing countries like India, women experience threats to their lives, health and well-being are also overburdened with work and lack power and influence; further, the situation is vulnerable among the marginalized segment. A unique PVTG of the northern part of West Bengal is struggling for its very existence through the life experiences of motherhood and childcare practices. It is noticed that most often they follow the age-old traditions while not completely unaware of the modern biomedical procedures. The lack of accessibility makes them less confident towards the latter. A typical state of transition is evident, although their conceptions regarding the pregnancy, delivery and childcare practices are not significantly hyper-medicalized. Rather a continuous existence of humanization of birth process is being practised. The article explores the conspicuous women participation and significant roles in the entire health-seeking behaviour in connection to pregnancy, childbirth and related health care issues. Furthermore, the entire discourse also elucidates the state of motherhood and its intrinsic decision-making behaviour in order to retain the economic viability of the population.
Beyond Haushoferism: Geography, Geopolitics and National Socialist Rule at Munich’s Ludwig Maximilian University
Co-partisanship with mayors, institutional performance, and citizen trust in local governance institutions: Evidence from Tunisia
Party Politics, Volume 29, Issue 5, Page 952-968, September 2023.
Does co-partisanship with mayors influence citizen trust in local governance institutions in new democracies? I answer this question through conducting a case study in Tunisia. I evaluate Arab Barometer (2018) survey data on trust in local governance institutions, and interview data with mayors, council members and civil society organizations (CSOs). The results indicate that Tunisians who support the same political party as their mayors tend to develop greater levels of trust in local governance institutions. Both quantitative evidence through a mediation model and qualitative evidence link a substantive portion of this relationship to the perceptions of institutional performance, such as their degrees of corruption, clientelism, inclusivity and efficiency. The findings identify the role and mechanism of co-partisanship in shaping trust in local governance institutions among the emerging democracies. This contributes to understanding the influence of parties in new democracies despite their weaknesses.
Does co-partisanship with mayors influence citizen trust in local governance institutions in new democracies? I answer this question through conducting a case study in Tunisia. I evaluate Arab Barometer (2018) survey data on trust in local governance institutions, and interview data with mayors, council members and civil society organizations (CSOs). The results indicate that Tunisians who support the same political party as their mayors tend to develop greater levels of trust in local governance institutions. Both quantitative evidence through a mediation model and qualitative evidence link a substantive portion of this relationship to the perceptions of institutional performance, such as their degrees of corruption, clientelism, inclusivity and efficiency. The findings identify the role and mechanism of co-partisanship in shaping trust in local governance institutions among the emerging democracies. This contributes to understanding the influence of parties in new democracies despite their weaknesses.
Lifting the veil of secrecy – dissenting opinions in the subnational constitutional courts of Germany
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Lifting the veil of secrecy – dissenting opinions in the subnational constitutional courts of Germany
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Status and Survival of Dalit Women-headed Households: Socio-economic Analysis
Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Volume 15, Issue 1_suppl, Page S166-S179, August 2023.
In both developing and developed countries, women play a primary source of the social-economic support of the families. Unless there is no adult male living in the family permanently, Dalit women are not considered the head of the household. Gender bias exists when it is stated that the head of the family must always be an adult male, even if a woman’s socio-economic contribution to household upkeep is equal to or higher than a man’s. Most female-headed households are unplanned, as humans rather than natural forces established them. When males leave the family or divorce for any reason, the Dalit woman is left with the massive task of looking after the children. The Dalit women-headed households belonged to a wide area to analyse the Ranipet district of Tamil Nadu. Women, on the other hand, are unaware of their rights. It is especially true for low-income women. They are also discouraged from obtaining legal help due to a lack of financial resources and the duration of the legal process. It is possible to conclude that regulations alone will not be sufficient to prevent discrimination against Dalit women. Hence, the researcher analyses the socio-economic conditions and the status and survival of women’s headed households in the Ranipet district of Tamil Nadu.
In both developing and developed countries, women play a primary source of the social-economic support of the families. Unless there is no adult male living in the family permanently, Dalit women are not considered the head of the household. Gender bias exists when it is stated that the head of the family must always be an adult male, even if a woman’s socio-economic contribution to household upkeep is equal to or higher than a man’s. Most female-headed households are unplanned, as humans rather than natural forces established them. When males leave the family or divorce for any reason, the Dalit woman is left with the massive task of looking after the children. The Dalit women-headed households belonged to a wide area to analyse the Ranipet district of Tamil Nadu. Women, on the other hand, are unaware of their rights. It is especially true for low-income women. They are also discouraged from obtaining legal help due to a lack of financial resources and the duration of the legal process. It is possible to conclude that regulations alone will not be sufficient to prevent discrimination against Dalit women. Hence, the researcher analyses the socio-economic conditions and the status and survival of women’s headed households in the Ranipet district of Tamil Nadu.