China Report, Volume 59, Issue 3, Page 243-258, August 2023.
The China Story, also known as Xi Jinping’s Chinese Dream of the Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation, is widely accepted as the central narrative for the leadership’s ideological and political legitimacy-building efforts. Despite its significance and the widespread attention it has received in the decade since its inception, surprisingly little literature has examined the Chinese Dream through the lens of narrative theory. This article seeks to close this gap by offering a structural narratological analysis of the China Story. It illuminates how the narrative comprises policy-oriented rhetorical frames that form overarching themes that direct party-state actions and support Xi Jinping’s status as the ‘core’ leader. The paper argues that as a ‘master narrative’, it seeks to provide a spiritual foundation and a compelling vision of a strong, prosperous, and unified China under the rule of the Chinese Communist Party.
Experiences of Scheduled Caste Community on Welfare Schemes: A Study of Ramai Aawas Yojana in Maharashtra
Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Ahead of Print.
The government has created numerous schemes for the benefit of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe populations, yet their lifestyles have not seen significant improvement. Policymakers frequently do not consider the opinions of the target audience when drafting schemes, which causes target audiences to suffer as a result of accessing such schemes. When any plans or policies are created, the opinions of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Communities must be taken into consideration. The major goals of this paper are to have a theoretical discussion on this, as well as to look at the rights-based approach in social work and properly comprehend its difficulty in practice. Housing schemes have been given considerable precedence in welfare programmes for disadvantaged people like Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes. This research report is based on investigations made to learn about the experiences of the Scheduled Caste Community with Maharashtrian welfare schemes like the Ramai Aawas Yojana. The study’s primary goals are to investigate the difficulties beneficiaries encounter when claiming benefits from the scheme and the changes they notice in their lives as a result. It will also look at the administrative framework for scheme implementation, such as municipalities. The article aims to examine the difficulties faced by the Scheduled Caste group and their perspectives on (a) the Ramai Aawas Yojana Welfare Scheme and (b) the difficulties they encountered in receiving the Scheme’s benefits. (c) How their lives have altered as a result of using the housing program’s advantages. It is founded on an exploratory research design and qualitative approach.
The government has created numerous schemes for the benefit of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe populations, yet their lifestyles have not seen significant improvement. Policymakers frequently do not consider the opinions of the target audience when drafting schemes, which causes target audiences to suffer as a result of accessing such schemes. When any plans or policies are created, the opinions of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Communities must be taken into consideration. The major goals of this paper are to have a theoretical discussion on this, as well as to look at the rights-based approach in social work and properly comprehend its difficulty in practice. Housing schemes have been given considerable precedence in welfare programmes for disadvantaged people like Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes. This research report is based on investigations made to learn about the experiences of the Scheduled Caste Community with Maharashtrian welfare schemes like the Ramai Aawas Yojana. The study’s primary goals are to investigate the difficulties beneficiaries encounter when claiming benefits from the scheme and the changes they notice in their lives as a result. It will also look at the administrative framework for scheme implementation, such as municipalities. The article aims to examine the difficulties faced by the Scheduled Caste group and their perspectives on (a) the Ramai Aawas Yojana Welfare Scheme and (b) the difficulties they encountered in receiving the Scheme’s benefits. (c) How their lives have altered as a result of using the housing program’s advantages. It is founded on an exploratory research design and qualitative approach.
Book review: Debi Chatterjee and Sipra Mukherjee (Eds and Trans.), Under My Dark Skin Flows a Red River: Translation of Dalit Writings from Bengal
Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Ahead of Print.
Debi Chatterjee and Sipra Mukherjee (Eds and Trans.), Under My Dark Skin Flows a Red River: Translation of Dalit Writings from Bengal. Samya Publications, 2021, 419 pp., ₹696.
Debi Chatterjee and Sipra Mukherjee (Eds and Trans.), Under My Dark Skin Flows a Red River: Translation of Dalit Writings from Bengal. Samya Publications, 2021, 419 pp., ₹696.
Caste, Religion and Otherness: Probing the Aporia of the Dalit–Muslim Question in Omprakash Valmiki’s Short Story ‘Salaam’ and Mohandas Naimishraya’s Autobiography Apne Apne Pinjare (Cages of Our Own)
Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Ahead of Print.
Dalit texts generally foreground the question of marginality in the context of caste-based discrimination, exclusion and violence. Interestingly, Mohan Das Naimishraya’s Apne Apne Pinjare (Cages of Our Own) and Omprakash Valmiki’s ‘Salaam’ go beyond the scope of exploring the dialectics of dominance and resistance by probing the complexity of otherness. The appropriation of the Dalit subject by the neo-Brahmanical forces us to rethink the notion of marginality. The aversion and hatred of Dalits against Muslims and the identification of Dalits as Hindus by Muslims obfuscate the power dynamics in a communal and casteist socius. The complex Dalit–Muslim relationship re-configures the power relations underpinning untouchability and propels us to re-interpret the troubled category of the ‘Other’. This article explores the epistemological and ontological uncertainty about the marginal categories which entail the historical experience of violence, disenfranchisement and oppression. The two Dalit texts problematize the identity of the Dalit as an ‘Other’ vis-a-vis the Muslim subject and thus highlight the liminality of the subaltern subject. This article seeks to decode the aporia of Dalit–Muslim question in the casteist and communally fractured social order.
Dalit texts generally foreground the question of marginality in the context of caste-based discrimination, exclusion and violence. Interestingly, Mohan Das Naimishraya’s Apne Apne Pinjare (Cages of Our Own) and Omprakash Valmiki’s ‘Salaam’ go beyond the scope of exploring the dialectics of dominance and resistance by probing the complexity of otherness. The appropriation of the Dalit subject by the neo-Brahmanical forces us to rethink the notion of marginality. The aversion and hatred of Dalits against Muslims and the identification of Dalits as Hindus by Muslims obfuscate the power dynamics in a communal and casteist socius. The complex Dalit–Muslim relationship re-configures the power relations underpinning untouchability and propels us to re-interpret the troubled category of the ‘Other’. This article explores the epistemological and ontological uncertainty about the marginal categories which entail the historical experience of violence, disenfranchisement and oppression. The two Dalit texts problematize the identity of the Dalit as an ‘Other’ vis-a-vis the Muslim subject and thus highlight the liminality of the subaltern subject. This article seeks to decode the aporia of Dalit–Muslim question in the casteist and communally fractured social order.
Untouchability, Caste and Supremacy of Hinduism: Rereading Swami Vivekananda
Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Ahead of Print.
Swami Vivekananda was a multi-faceted personality. Some of his primal ideas on India are timelessly resounding. One of the recurrent themes is Vivekananda’s agile efforts to revolutionize Hinduism. Hordes of literature emphatically explore Vivekananda’s profound views on Hinduism. Vivekananda is overwhelmingly credited as the towering figure who also spiritually revitalizes the vitals of Hinduism. At the same time, no sufficient attention is directed towards the question of untouchability and caste as presented by Vivekananda. Vivekananda’s whole body of ideas on caste and untouchability are largely left untouched, not least in the discourse on contemporary India. Are caste and untouchability interrelated according to Swami Vivekananda? Does Vivekananda consider caste and untouchability as the bane of Hinduism? Does Vivekananda call for the abolition of untouchability and caste? Does Vivekananda proffer the philosophical groundings about the supremacy of Hinduism? This article primarily attempts to dissect these immanent questions afresh.
Swami Vivekananda was a multi-faceted personality. Some of his primal ideas on India are timelessly resounding. One of the recurrent themes is Vivekananda’s agile efforts to revolutionize Hinduism. Hordes of literature emphatically explore Vivekananda’s profound views on Hinduism. Vivekananda is overwhelmingly credited as the towering figure who also spiritually revitalizes the vitals of Hinduism. At the same time, no sufficient attention is directed towards the question of untouchability and caste as presented by Vivekananda. Vivekananda’s whole body of ideas on caste and untouchability are largely left untouched, not least in the discourse on contemporary India. Are caste and untouchability interrelated according to Swami Vivekananda? Does Vivekananda consider caste and untouchability as the bane of Hinduism? Does Vivekananda call for the abolition of untouchability and caste? Does Vivekananda proffer the philosophical groundings about the supremacy of Hinduism? This article primarily attempts to dissect these immanent questions afresh.
Book review: N. Sukumar. Caste Discrimination and Exclusion in Indian Universities: A Critical Reflection
Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Ahead of Print.
N. Sukumar. Caste Discrimination and Exclusion in Indian Universities: A Critical Reflection. London and New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis, 2022, 185 pp., ₹13,569. ISBN: 978-1-003-09529-3 (Hardcover).
N. Sukumar. Caste Discrimination and Exclusion in Indian Universities: A Critical Reflection. London and New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis, 2022, 185 pp., ₹13,569. ISBN: 978-1-003-09529-3 (Hardcover).
Intersectional Discrimination: Gender and Caste
Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Ahead of Print.
Patriarchy subordinates and subdues the fair sex on the basis of gender, a social and cultural construct to divide the two sexes (biological construct). The caste system is the hidden apartheid of ancient India which continues even in contemporary times. Apart from these, several other markers of identity like religion, class, economic position and geographical location also play an important role in discrimination. These interact with each other to give a unique experience of discrimination rather than a conglomeration of oppressions. The intersections of gender and caste in India echo issues of violence, coercion and infringement of basic human rights which can be explained through intersectionality theory. Cultural studies have facilitated the documentation of the petit narrative, thus bringing the subaltern to the mainstream. Literature thus portrays such marginalization, which sometimes challenges the status quo or at times negotiates its way around it. This article intends to analyse the English translations of Pawade’s Antahsphot (1981), Kamble’s Jina Amucha (1985), Sivakami’s Pazhaiyana Kazhithalum (1989) and Limbale’s Akkarmashi (1991) through the lens of intersectionality in the cultural milieu.
Patriarchy subordinates and subdues the fair sex on the basis of gender, a social and cultural construct to divide the two sexes (biological construct). The caste system is the hidden apartheid of ancient India which continues even in contemporary times. Apart from these, several other markers of identity like religion, class, economic position and geographical location also play an important role in discrimination. These interact with each other to give a unique experience of discrimination rather than a conglomeration of oppressions. The intersections of gender and caste in India echo issues of violence, coercion and infringement of basic human rights which can be explained through intersectionality theory. Cultural studies have facilitated the documentation of the petit narrative, thus bringing the subaltern to the mainstream. Literature thus portrays such marginalization, which sometimes challenges the status quo or at times negotiates its way around it. This article intends to analyse the English translations of Pawade’s Antahsphot (1981), Kamble’s Jina Amucha (1985), Sivakami’s Pazhaiyana Kazhithalum (1989) and Limbale’s Akkarmashi (1991) through the lens of intersectionality in the cultural milieu.
Role of anti-/pro-public sector bias in shaping perceived performance and fairness: an experimental exploration in South Asia
.
Ambiguity and vagueness in party competition
Party Politics, Ahead of Print.
A central theme emerging from recent research on party competition is that political actors sometimes remain deliberately opaque in their communication. This phenomenon has been investigated under labels such as position-blurring, ambiguity, issue clarity or ideological clarity. In this paper we propose a distinction between two concepts that are sometimes conflated in this literature: ambiguity and vagueness. While ambiguity means that there is substantial variance in parties' positional signals, vagueness denotes political statements that are non-committal in terms of the policy action to be taken or the outcome to be achieved. We explore the co-variation of these two dimensions and their relationship to issue ownership and government status using manifesto data produced by the Austrian National Election Study. These data are unique in that they provide detailed positional information as well as information on policy commitment (election pledges). We show that the two dimensions are uncorrelated and have opposite relationships with issue ownership (vagueness positive, ambiguity negative). We conclude that analyses of position-blurring in party competition should take different strategies of non-clarity in party communication into account.
A central theme emerging from recent research on party competition is that political actors sometimes remain deliberately opaque in their communication. This phenomenon has been investigated under labels such as position-blurring, ambiguity, issue clarity or ideological clarity. In this paper we propose a distinction between two concepts that are sometimes conflated in this literature: ambiguity and vagueness. While ambiguity means that there is substantial variance in parties' positional signals, vagueness denotes political statements that are non-committal in terms of the policy action to be taken or the outcome to be achieved. We explore the co-variation of these two dimensions and their relationship to issue ownership and government status using manifesto data produced by the Austrian National Election Study. These data are unique in that they provide detailed positional information as well as information on policy commitment (election pledges). We show that the two dimensions are uncorrelated and have opposite relationships with issue ownership (vagueness positive, ambiguity negative). We conclude that analyses of position-blurring in party competition should take different strategies of non-clarity in party communication into account.
New Measures for Governing Religions in Xi’s China
China Report, Volume 59, Issue 3, Page 259-274, August 2023.
With the incorporation of the State Administration for Religious Affairs (SARA) into the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) United Front Work Department in 2018, religious affairs have been brought back into the direct control of the Party. While SARA has retained its name, it is no longer an independent state agency. Five further legal measures were introduced from 2019 to 2021. This review essay examines these legal changes in order to update the dominant understanding of Xi Jinping’s attempt to reshape religious order in the hands of the CCP. The specific creation of regulations on Islamic affairs and the Internet also responds to Xi’s perceived problems regarding religious affairs in the contemporary era. Under the new measures, the state has demanded clear administration of religious groups, creating functions and positions like those in the Party’s branches. Beijing has further increased its control over religious personnel by establishing files on each of them, including details of any misconduct, in order to assess their trustworthiness. This essay concludes that the CCP continues to work toward the final eradication of religions in a Marxist manner and that China’s practices differ from existing international legal norms to which, at least nominally, China adheres as a signatory.
With the incorporation of the State Administration for Religious Affairs (SARA) into the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) United Front Work Department in 2018, religious affairs have been brought back into the direct control of the Party. While SARA has retained its name, it is no longer an independent state agency. Five further legal measures were introduced from 2019 to 2021. This review essay examines these legal changes in order to update the dominant understanding of Xi Jinping’s attempt to reshape religious order in the hands of the CCP. The specific creation of regulations on Islamic affairs and the Internet also responds to Xi’s perceived problems regarding religious affairs in the contemporary era. Under the new measures, the state has demanded clear administration of religious groups, creating functions and positions like those in the Party’s branches. Beijing has further increased its control over religious personnel by establishing files on each of them, including details of any misconduct, in order to assess their trustworthiness. This essay concludes that the CCP continues to work toward the final eradication of religions in a Marxist manner and that China’s practices differ from existing international legal norms to which, at least nominally, China adheres as a signatory.