Assignment 1: Book Review Course: South Asian social thought and media Submitted to: Prof.

Anand Kumar

Ethnicity and Nation-building in South Asia

Urmila Phandis & Rajat Ganguly

Submitted by: Prafulla Rana, IV semester, CSSS School of Social Sciences JNU, New Delhi-110067

The book Ethnicity and nation-building in south Asia is co-authored by both Urmila Phandis and Rajat Ganguly. It was first published in 1989 by the Sage publication Inc. and later came with a revised edition in 2001. It runs through 467 pages comprising eight chapters. This book examines the manner in which ethnic groups develop and are then politicized. The book also discusses the challenges posed by such groups to nation-building. An in-depth investigation is made by the author of the diverse impulses which reinforce ethnic specifics in multi-ethnic societies and the adequacy of institutional arrangements to cope with the pulls and pressures of inter-ethnic competition for a stake in the system. Five case studies are presented in the book which looks at specific ethnic conflicts in the region. The book begins with the apprehension that whether the multi-ethnic or the plural states would be able to withstand the dual onslaught of ethnic nationalism and the global economic order in the new millennium with the dual proposition of ethnic identity is significant but not a sufficient requisite for evoking ethnicity at first and in second, the higher stakes of the community and its leadership in the power structure, the greater the possibilities of strengthening the building of a nation as an amalgam of ethnic pluralities and yet be composite as well as secular in its totality (pp. 7) Providing a critical appraisal for the various approaches on the themes of ethnicity and nation-building, the book gives a broad view of the aforementioned themes in the first chapter entitled Ethnicity and nation-building: approaches and issues (pp.15-60). Here the author have discussed the major concepts such as Ethnicity, nation, nationalism, ethnic nationalism and civic nationalism. Along with the conceptual clarification, they have taken views from the scholars like Ernest Barker, Ernest Gellner, Charles Keyes and Max Weber etc. to embolden, clarify and fine tune the concepts mentioned above. In the second chapter entitled Ethnic groups in south Asia: an overview (pp.60-86) a great care has been taken to give an overview of the ethnic groups active in the south Asian region. As a result of their case study, a list has given towards the end of the chapter which includes the Tamils Hindus & the Buddhist Sinhalese in Sri Lanka, the anti-Hindi Tamils, the Sikhs demanding Khalistan in Punjab, the North-East ethnic groups such as the Nagas, the Mizos, and the rebellious Assamese of India. Here the book lacks the completeness as it doesnt enlist the separatist Telengana people, the Muslims of Kashmir and the separatist Gorkhas in Darjeeling. Besides, the Chakmas in the CHT area of Bangladesh, the hill people, the Nepalis and the Tarai Hindus in Nepal, the native Bhutanese and the migrant Nepalese of Bhuatan. Thus the authors have tried to cover all the ethnic groups struggling in the south Asian region. Next follows the third chapter entitled South Asian states systems: diverse patterns, similar tendencies(pp.87-144) which deals with the system of the south Asian states and their governance. It throws light upon emergence and evolution of the government system in those colonised countries where the state-building took place earlier to the nation-

building because of the presence of the colonial forces and it also elaborates how the various ethnic groups become resurgent just after the retreat of the colonial powers. In the fourth chapter entitled Central leadership and ethnicity: perspectives, policies and strategies(pp.145-215), the authors have tried to portray the ongoing relationship between the central government and the various ethnic groups. It discusses that how the ethnic groups are engaged with the governance, how they are dealt with strong hand in some countries and how they have been taken up for participation in the political affair of some countries. As a part of their case study, they have shown that the Tamils in Sri Lanka are the worst hit ethnic group which has become the victim of state antagonism. The Sri Lankan government has put all of its power from military action to diplomatic strategy just not to allow the Tamils into the mainstream. Similarly the early struggle of the Bangladeshi Bengalis had the same fate as the West Pakistan had held an internal colonialism on the East Pakistani people who are struggling against the islamisation of their culture and language. The Baluchs in Pakistan, the militant Sikhs in India are some of the ethnic groups, according to the author, who were not entertained by the central leadership of their respective states. But some other ethnic groups such as the immigrant Nepalis of Bhutan have been recognised by the state and they have been incorporated into the mainstream. The next chapter entitled Ethnic movements: dynamics of demand-divergence(pp.216257) deals with the various ethnic movements, its dynamic and divergence taking place in India, as well as in the other south Asian countries. This chapter specially deals with the ethnic movements going on India. It encompasses the anti-Hindi movements of the south in which the Tamils were the champions of that cause which resulted and resolved in the adoption of English as the connective language and the Three-Language Formula. The movements of the rebellious Sikhs in the Punjab province which took place in the eighties in demand for a separate Khalisthan state has been highlighted. Similarly the ethnic strife going on in the north-east part of the country has also been covered in this book. But the rest secessionist demands such as the Telengana, Koshal and the Gorkha struggles etc have not been illustrated which is lacking of this book. After it, follows the next chapter entitled Ethnic dynamics of autonomist and secessionist demands(pp.258-312) where the autonomist as well as the separatist demands of the various ethnic groups of the south Asian region has been mentioned. Interestingly it focuses the light on the liberation war of Bangladesh where the ethnic group has changed or shifted their ethnic identity from religion to language. As the author mentions, the people of the east Bengal projected themselves as Muslim during the separation of Pakistan but during the liberation war, they projected themselves as Bengalis where the horizontal differentiation of ethnic identity took place from religion to language. Next the tumultuous struggle of the Tamils under LTTE in Sri Lanka, the Baluchs, Pathans and the Muhajirs of Pakistan has been clearly reflected in this book. However, Maldives has been projected as ethnic tension free country.

Then comes an important part of the book which focuses upon the external dimension of ethnic strife of a state. The seventh chapter entitled Ethnic separatism: external dimensions(pp.313-350) deal with the external impact that an ethnic struggle puts beyond the border of its native country. According to the result of their case study, the authors have showed it clear that how various ethnic struggles in south Asia has brought changes in the external relations of the different countries and how it rocked the equilibrium in the south Asia. This part of the book reflects the changing nature of the bilateral relation between Russia and India, Sri Lanka and India, India and Pakistan, China and India, U.S.A and China and lastly India and other European countries. It shows that how due to the military action in the Bangladeshi war, India emerged as a growing power in the south Asia and in the Asia as a whole. It also focuses on the Tamil Elam struggle by the LTTEs under Vellupillai Prabhakaran which had its percussion in India, U.S.A, China and Israel. In the concluding part (pp.351-378) the authors have given an account of the problem that how the ethnic nationalism supersedes the civic nationalism and how it has been a blockade in the way of nation building in the states of south Asian region. In concluding comments it can be said that the book is a great portrayal of the problems of ethnic tensions in the south Asian region. Moreover it deals with some theoretical explanations of nationalism, ethnic nationalism etc. which gives a wider view for the reader. Apart from the good sides of the book, it suffers from some short-comings such as the incompleteness of data where the Telengana movement, Gorkha movement has not been given importance. Moreover it lacks in giving the recent coverage as it gives the view till the late nineties. A lot of changes have taken place for example; the LTTE has been crushed by the Sri Lankan govt. However, the book still is a source of reliable facts which gives a broad view of the problem of ethnicity in the south Asian states and a must read for gaining knowledge about ethnicity and separatism movements erupting in south Asia.