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    Blurred Boundaries

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    blurred boundaries: the discourse of corruption, the culture of politics, and the imagined state AKHIL GUPTA—Staniord University ‘While doing iework in a smal village in Non India (in 1984-85, and again in 1989) that ‘have named Alpur Iwas stuck by how frequently the theme of corruption cropped up inthe everyday conversations of vilagers, Most ofthe stores the men told each othe inthe evening, ‘when the day's work was done and small groups had gathered at habitat places to shoot the breeze, had to-do with compton (bhvashtaachaae) and "the late.” Sometimes the discussion Rajiv Gandhi's election in [November 1984 was fought largely on the slogans of the eradication of corruption and preserving the nation’ integrity inthe face of separatist threats from Sikhs, Precisely because fhe was initially dubbed “Mr. Clean” the subject of coruption later came to haunt him as his adminisration came under a cloud for allegedly accepting kickbacks fom Bofors, a Swedish small-arms manufacturer. In fat, Bofors became the centerpiece ofthe opposition’ successful fort to overthrow his regime In the elections of 1989, in which a non-Congress government ‘ame o power for only the second time in 43 years of electoral politics, another Me. Clean, V. P. Singh, emerged as the leader. He had eater been unceremoniously booted out of Rajiv Gandhi’ cabinet because, as defense minster, he had saned an investigation imo the “Bons Affair” The effect of Bofors was electrally explosive precisely because ithecamea symbol of Corruption at al level ofthe state. For example, the conductor on the notoriously inefcint Unar Pradesh State Roadways bus justied not retuming change to me by saying, “I Raliv ‘Gandhi can take 64 crore in bribes, whats the harm in my aking 68 paisa ona ticket The discourse of comuption, however, went ar beyond just setng the terms of electoral ‘competion between political parties, tot onl helped to define “the political ut ako served to constitute “the publi” that was perceived tobe reacting to cortption. ince this was done largely trough the mass media, we must pay careful atention to newspaper as cultural texts that ghweusimponant cuestothe political culture ofthe pevio. nasties of major peeletion surveys the widely ead metropolitan English daily, the Times of Ina, tempted to analyze the political impact of Bofors and st out to each how the electorate viewed compton ‘One ofits aces begins by quoting a villager who remarked, “fone [politcal party, i, Congyess|isa poisonous snake, the other [opposition party sa cobra” (Times of nda 19891. ‘The aricle went on 1 say: “Whether the Congres sin power othe opposition makes no erence wo the common man and woman wio hast contend with proliferating compton ‘which afects every sphere of life... Bofors doesn’ brush agains their lives. The pay-of fora ration card ora job does” (198921). ‘The article further elaborated the relationship benween the “ordinary ciizen” and the sate ‘wth reference othe ol of formal politics and politicians: In Ur, the majority fe ta lnreasing comspon stand kon te grows compton in pli ices MP. Vea, a bacward ls tear for Ganda piel out Ut pliant ae ven bane pin programme capture power al ens. And the ves sus expended on elections ae ‘bane by una maa, "Wiest coupon Bee no polite,” sad Aminchand Ae, 3 Sincnan fom opal ims of no 9081] ‘The theme of comuption was prominent in an article ona cena government scheme to help ‘the poor in India Today, which pointed out how the resources being allocated by the central government were being misused by the state government in Madhya Pradesh (1989)2” inthis ‘example, formal polities was not reduced 10 competion among, political parties and the bureaucratic apparatus (where payo for jbs are given) was not confused with the regione (where the beneis of Bofors presumably wend Instead the discourse of corruption became a 386 american ethnologist ‘means by which a fairly complex picture of the state was symbolically constructed in public culture. In addition, | examined the local etons of si Hind newspapers with diferent political ‘fentatons most commonly read in the Mandi area: Aaj Daink aagran, Amar Ujaala, Hindustan, Rashwrya Sahaara and Jansata. There were significant ferences between the {englit-language magazines and newspapers mentioned above, with their urban, educated, “middle-class eadershi, and the vernacular press. The reason lay in the structural location ‘ofthe national English-language dailies within the “core” reglons—the urban centers of capital, bigh politics, administration, and education The vernacular newspapers maintained archer sense ofthe mulilayered nature ofthe state because their reportage was necessarily focused ‘on evensin diferent localities, which corresponded to lower levels ofthe state hierarchy. They could not, however, simultaneously ignore events atthe higher levels of state (region) and ration. By contrast, metropolitan newspapers focused almost exclusively on large-scale events, with local bureaucracies featuring ciel inthe eters of complaint writen by citizens about ty services. The vernacular prestherefoe particulary clearly delineate the mutlayered and plvientic nature ofthe sate.” “The Hindi newspapers wit inited regional circulations, read mostly bythe residents ofthe ‘many small towns and large vllages dig the countryside, in fact were, as opposed to the “natonal" Hind dailies such asthe Navbhaat Times, much less prone to ely the state as a ‘monolithic organization witha single chai of command. They made a practice of explicitly ‘naming specific departments ofthe sate bureaucracy. The vernacular press also seemed 12 pursue stoves of coruption wih greater 2el than is metropolitan countespan For example, the dally Aajhad headlines such asthe folowing: “Police Busy Warming Own Pockets’ (19891, “Plunder in T. B. Hospital” (1989e), and “Farmers Harassed by Land Consolidation Oficial” (19894) In none ofthese repos was the sate (sarkaa invoked 96 8 unitary ety. nal f them, specific departments were named, and very often specific people aswell, They also documented in great detail exactly what these comupt practices were. For ‘example the article on the tuberculosis hospital stated exactly how much money was “charged” for each sep (RS. 5 fr atest, RS. 10 forthe doctor, R.5 for the compounder, and so on in a treatment that was sxpposedt be provided fee of charge. Te article on the land consolidation ‘offices named him and stated how mach money he demanded in bribes from speciic farmers {ako name). Simialy the news story on the police reponed that a specie precinct was ‘extrting money fom vehicle owners by treatening to sue bogus cations. Two features ofthese epons were particularly striking. Fis, state officials higher up the trrarchy wer often depicted as completely unresponsive to complains and even as complicit withthe compe practices. "Despite several complaint by citizens to the head of the region, nothing has been done,” was a familia reain inthe repos. For inance, one shor report ‘ated thatthe dealer wo had the contacto dstebute subsidized rations ofsugarand kerosene ‘wasseling them onthe black atket wth poiical protection andthe fll knowledge oftgional ‘supervisors (Aaj 19890) Similarly, another sory, "To Get Telephone To Work, Feed Them Sweets" (Aaj 19896), reported that comupt employees of the telephone department tld ‘eustomes that they could go ahead and complain as much as they warted, but, unless the telephone workers got thet avorite sweetmeats the customers telephones would not work. ‘The second noteworthy featur in eglonal newspaper accounts was thei emphasis on, and ‘constuction of, the public. A common discursive practice was otlk of “the publi” (anata) ‘that was being openly exploited by the police or “the etizens”(naagaid who were harassed by blackmarketering, or “he peopl” (log whose clear accusation against the hospital was ven voice in the paper, oF “simple farmers (bholay-bhaalaay ksaan) who were ruthlessly ‘exploited by the land consolidation aficer. In all cases, the function ofthe press appeared to blurred boundaries 387 bethatofcreatingaspace in which he grievances ofthe masses couldbeaired andthe common 00d Vjanhit pursued “The press was of course doing much more than simply airing preexisting grievances, The state constructed here was one that consisted of widely disparate institutions with ite or no coordination among them, of mutiple levels of authority, none of which were accountable to ‘ordinary peopl, and employees (secure in the knowledge that they could not be fied) who treated citizens with contempt. Atte sametine these repos also created subjects" who were represented 3: being exploited, powerless, and outraged foreground the newspapers’ fun: tions in order to draw attention tothe rhetorical strategy deployed by the mass media to {galvanize imo action citizens who expect tate institutions to be accountable othe. ‘Ahough Ihave sharply diferentated the English-language and vernacular press inter ‘representations of “he tte” and the construction of subjects, ane must keep two caveats in mind at all ies. Fist, i one loks a newspapers rom ifierent regions of Uta Pradesh, and published in othe languages for example, Urdu, wide variations are to be found within the ‘Yemacular pres Second, the mass media snot the only important source forthe circulation ‘of representation ofthe stan public culture. Police and administration oficial repeatedly ‘ice thee rustation at their inability to counter “wild tris" and “rumors” that contest and Contradict the oficial version of events Police ofcias in an adjoining dst are quoted inthe Times of Incas saying, “They go about spreading rumours and we can't ightthem effectively. “These rumours help gather crowds. And the agated crowd then tums on the police, provoking clash” (Mitra and Ahmed 1969:12). The “bush telegraph [sic] spreads rumors quickly and convincingly (Mitra 1989)? Unlike the technologies of commanication such as newspapers, radio, and televise, rumor cannot be conte by simply clamping down on the source Prodction (Coombe 1993), Rumor therefore becomes an especially effective vehicle 12 challenge oficial accounts, especially when agencies othe state transgress local standards of behavior By definition, conuption is violation of norms and sandards of conduc. The other face of a discourse of comuption, therefore, sa discourse of accountability Herfeld pus the emphasis inthe right place when he says that accountability isa socially produced, culturally saturated amalgam of eas about person, presence, an poly... whose] meaning culturally specific... land whose} management of personal or collective identity cannot break fee of socal experience” (1992a:47) Expectations of right” behavir, standards of accountability, and norms of conduct fr state oficial, in ether words, come from social groups aswell as {tom “the sat. Sometimes these standards and norms converge: more olen, they do NOt Thus, there are always divergent and conflicting asessments of whether a particular couse of action is comupt.” Subject deployment of discourses of comupton are necessarily mediated by their structural location this point i developed further below. But state ofa are also ‘mukiply positioned within diferent regimes of power: in consequence, they simltaneousty ‘employ, and ae subject to, quite varying discourses of accountability. The manner in which ‘hese oficial negotiate the tensions inherent in thei location inthe dally practices both helps to create certain representations ofthe state and poweruly shapes assessments of it thereby afetng its legitimacy. Infact, sugges for legitimacy can be interpreted in terms ofthe efor to const the state and “the public” symbolically ina particular manne. ‘Moreover, fone were to document the transformations inthe discourse of crption from colonial imes to the present (a project beyond the scope ofthis artic, t would be clea that the postcolonial sate has tel generated new discourses of accountability. Action tolerated ‘orconsiered legitimate under colonial rule maybe classified a “corr” by the rule-making ‘apparatuses of the independent nation state because an electoral democtacy is deemed accountable to “he people." Te sense of pervasive corruption ina county sucha india might then self be a consequence ofthe changes in the discourse of accountability promulgated by 368 american ethnologist ‘postcolonial nationalists. In adltion, significant changes during the postcolonial petiod have arisen ftom the pressures of electra polities (as evidenced bythe Bofors contoversy) and from ‘peacant mobilization. In the Mandi region, the Kisan Union has been very succesil in ‘organizing peasants against the state by focusing on the ise of comuption ameng lowe levels ofthe bureaueracy. Although there are variations inthe discourse of comuption within regions and during the postcolonial era, the end of colonialism constitutes significant transition. One ofthe reasons for thi is that nationals as opposed to colonial regimes seek the kind of popular legacy ‘that will enable them to actin the name of “he people." They thus place new responsibilities ‘on sate employees and vest new rights in subjects who are then constiuted 3s cizens. The postcolonial state consciously sets out to create subject postions unknown during the colonial ‘era: “cizenship" dacs nt just marc inclusiveness na teetorial domain but indicates ase of Figs theoretically invested in subjects who inhabit the nation” One of the crucial ingredients of discourses of etizenship ina populist democracy such sngia has ben that state employees are considered accountable to “the people” ofthe county. The discourse of compton, by ‘marking those actions that constuteanintingement of such righ, thus acts to represent he righ ofctzenso themselves “The role ofthe Kisan Union further highligh sgnicant regional variation inthe discourse ‘of cortuption. Westem Litar Pradesh the regon where Mandi located, hasbeen the center of very successful agrarian mailzaionsled by the cas of well o-do peasants. Tis movernent ‘was first led by Chaudhary Charan Singh, a former prime minister who consistently mounted Aan attack onthe “urban bias of sate polis. is now been given 2 new direction bythe Kisan Union led by Mahendar Singh Tait” The landowning castesin hisregion have become fit prosperous as they have been the chief beneficiaries of the geen revolution, But this newfound ‘wealth has yet tobe translated into bureaucratic power and cultural capil. In oer words, given the central role that tat institutions play in ural ie, these groups seek to stabilize the Condition forthe reproduction oftheir dominance. Because they peceive the Sate tobe acting agaist thee tres, they deploy the discourse of comuption to undermine the credibility of the state and to attack the manner in which government organizations operate “The dacourse of corrption i ental our understanding of the relationship between the state and social groups precely because it plays this dual ole of enabling people wo construct ‘he sate symbolically and o define themselves asclizens. Foritisthrough such presentations, and through the public practices of various government agencies, thatthe state comes tobe ‘marked and delineated from other organizations and institutions in social ile, The sate vel and whatever is construed to stand apart from it—communty, polity, society, civil society {Kligman 1990), politcal sciety—ae al culturally constctd in specic ideological lds. k is hence impeatve that we consanty contextualize the constuction of the state within paricular historical and cultural conjuncture. have employed the discourse of corruption as 2 meansto demonstrate how the state comes tobe imagined in one such historical and cultural ‘content. The discourse of comuption here functions as a diagnostic ofthe at, the imagined state anata scheduled cate resin of Atard hae 25 hs om apr a “haven sae he Mdhan sao he Lok abha The ony pat ofthe goverment ace he police Sato ft omy hus nda comup. The pce demand ber nd dot ester Complitsof scheled ‘ne peple ema” Tne ois 150827 So far, this anticle has dealt withthe practices of local levels of the bureaucracy and the discourses of corruption in public culture, respectively. Together, they enable a cenain ‘constuction ofthe state that meshes the imagined transloca institution with its localized ‘lured boundaries 389 ‘embodiments. The government, in other words, s being constructed here in the imagination and everyday practices of ordinary people. Of couse, this is exactly what “corporate culture” {and nationalism do: they make possible and then natralize the constuction of such nonlo- ‘alizable instusons. I then becomes very important to understand the mechanisms, oF ‘modalities, that make it possibleto imagine the state. What isthe proces whereby the “eality” of ransocalenites comes tobe experienced? “To answer this queston, one must grasp the pivotal role of public culture, which represents ‘one ofthe mos important modalities forthe discursive constuction of “the sate." Obviously, ot everyone imagines te state in quite te same manner. So far very litle esearch has been ‘done onthe relationship between dversely located groups of people and thei employment of the diferent media of representation and of varying resources of cultural capitan imagining ‘he state.” For example, Ram Singh andhis sons are relatively prosperous men from one ofthe lowest castes (jatav in Alou. They had recently acquired a television set as part of the dowry received inthe mariage of oe ofthe sons. Ram Singh olde, ina conesion bom ofamintue ‘of pide and embarrassment that since the television had ative ther farm work ha sured ‘because, rsteadofirigaing the crop, they would al sit down and watch television. Both the _pumpses used for irgation and the television set were dependent on eratic and ocasional ‘supplies of eleccity.) Television wasa constant pointofreference in Ram Singh'sconversation, "interviewed Ram Singh inthe context ofthe impending elections the elections took place in December 1989; the conversation dates fom lately. He sai ‘The publics singing the pra of Raj Candi. He i paying ely cle ation the ed Pot people [Sahat aut Lr raha ai). hasbeen avengers Inthe vl aes ond fro dng pir ory pos Frenne pte cones ‘ve consider the goverment which suppor vs nl ppl ik were our mathe and athe (Us oa mobs hy tamaan masoy ha tweet forthe Cogyesn nose woul py Sy ‘enon the salle castes [cote fat NOt even od oo ater us, oly the Cones. Ais pint, his son intervened ‘he Cons fl the oo, tj for he ower canes, exigent ing 0 raw people gover ob [Bator lag rater ai. au men ich hare han Ram Singh retumed wo the discussion: ‘teat he pane ay pod filme ef ch me Ce ee roe Preeti to “Does he goverment mows tof te conus Haske. “Why da do amyninge Ran Sh el wget eg we to a gle Set tourna enter ree siete rtd Ser Sete re ee naar dancrmiseeat eset fam Sigh psn ere dpa some cninuly wih an ole, ira vs the sue" Typesly, ns one ler spent esl sh rae wes Soll ven ocomapWhie i hay vary wel ee ese nk tht ene en Siqualy expan Ran Seg looky exannng contemporary pace rae tan ‘Simnaten ofbeet* Cre shook apace of teat hr rfc eos When compli of comple opts eal eal th tytn shay conducsby anes of higher Higher efi es een poting ete ‘cpr: nd pening el cl er comasbehov. ‘eS ca tenes tn atetconercans ste sarhae be uted wh pet tothe lason afte ater am Sigs porter pon hess andesar hye Images sae shes ielan oe sched ne manhole os 390 american ethnologist ‘one ofthe five television set inthe village, a key symbol of upward mobility. Several of his sons are educated, and two of them have obtained relatively good government jobs as 2 consequence. The scheduled castes ofthis area in general, andthe atavs in particular, have historically supported successive Congress regimes ‘The ist hing that impresses one about Ram Singh’seterpretation of the state" how clearly he understands its compostion a an entty with multiple layers and diverse locales and centers. [Alhough the word for epime an state she same in Hindi Garkaan>” Ram Singh maintains 8a distinction between the regime and the bureaucracy. He ses the regime's good intentions toward the lower castes being usted by venal sate oficias. Cealy, Ram Singh hasa sense that there ae several layers of government” above the one thate has always deat with he ‘ery top personified by then-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, and thatthe ferent levels can exer ‘opposing pulls on policy (specifially those that affect a schedulecaste person like him. Interestingly, Ram Singh reproduces an apologetics forte failure of policy he formulation fs allright its the implernerdors that ae to blame) pervasively found in India’ “mide clsses,” ‘delivered by plitcians belonging tothe regime in power, and reproduced inthe work of academics higher bureaucrats, and sympathetic oficial of intematonal agencies, ‘The second striking fact about Ram Singh’ testimony is that apart fom his ruanced description of the tate as a disaggregated and mullayered institution, bis analysis closely parallels a discourse on the sate that is disseminated by the mass media and is therefore ‘warslocal. Ram Singhs example demonstrates the importance of public cultureinthediscursive ‘onstruction ofthe tate: he talks knowledgeably about “the public's perception of Rajiv and (of Rais near. His son's perception of the Congress as being “for all the poor” clearly ako ‘owes a great dealt mass-mediated sources, ‘My suspicion thatthe close association with Rav Gandhi and the explanation about the ‘omrupt mide levels ofthe sate wasinuenced bythe impacto television gained force when ‘one of his sons explained * We ails people whose Knowledge would be confined othe vile. This way he by watching {eecison we eam’ nb abst he Oe wor, aout ere ar fn, bout how OPE ope eget ite more wily (Rach cunyadaar sok aye hai Inthe buildup tothe elections, the government controlled television network, Doordarshan, spent mos ofthe nightly newscast folowing Rajiv Gandhi on his campaign tous. Obviously, ‘tas nt just the county that was being imagined on television through the representation of is afferent parts but also the national state through the image of “is” leader. Popular “ndersiandings ofthe tate therefore are constivtedin a dscusive field where the mass media play a ertical role. Ram Singh’s words reveal the important par that national media play in “loca” discourses onthe tate. Clearly, its not posible to deduce Ram Singh’ undersianding (of the state" entrely fom his personal interactions with the bureaucracy; conversely, iis apparentthathe snot merely paroing te reports he obtains from television andnewspapers Rather, what we see from this example Is the articulation between (necessarily factored) hegemonic discourses and the inevitably situated and interested interpretations of subater subjects. Ram Singhs everyday experiences lead him to believe tat there mustbe government fica and agencies (whose presence, motives, and actions ae represented to him through ‘he mass media) interested in helping people lke im. Only that could explain why his sons have succeeded in obtaining highly prized goverment jobs despite their neglect by local Schooltachers and their iltreatment by local officials. Yet wien he talks about “the public,” and with irs-person familiarity about Rajiv’seffors on behalf te poor, hes clearly drawing ‘on a mass-mediated knowledge of what that upper-level of government comprises, who the ‘agents responsible for its actions are, and what kinds of policies and programs they are promoting” blurred boundaries 391 ‘There abviousy no Archimedean point fom which to visualize “the state,” only numerous situated knowledges (Haraway 1988). Bureaucrats, for example, imagine it through statistics (Hacking 1982), oficial reports, and tours, whereas citizens do so through newspaper stories, dealings wih paicular goverment agencies, the pronouncements of polticians, and sofort CConsrvtions ofthe stat clearly vary according to the manner in which diferent actors ae postoned. Its therefore important to situate a cenain symbolic constuction ofthe sate with respectto the patcular context in which ts realized. Theimpontance ofthe assmediashould not bind us to the diferences that ens in the way that diverse stuated people imagine the For tance, Ram Singh’ poston asa elativly well2o-dolower-csteperson, whose family has benefited from rules regarding employment quotas for scheduled castes, explains his suppor forthe higher echelons of government. At the same ime, his interaction with local fas hastaughthim thatthe, ike the powerful men inthe vilages, have litle orno sympathy for lower-case people like him, Therefore, he has a heen sense ofthe diferences among dierent levels ofthe state. On the other hand, ihe sems to share with the middleclass paricular view ofthe failure of goverment programs, is the result ofthe convergence of what fhe has leaned from his eveyay encounters withthe “state” with what he has discerned, as fis som indicates, tom the mass media, Congress rhetoric about beng the party ofthe poor ‘obviously resonates with Ram Singhs experience; hats why he calls the Congress government ‘is guardians (aa-ba9p) and blames the oficalsin the mide or nt following through with goverment ogra. Ram Singh’ view ofthe state thus fs shaped both by his ow encounters ‘with local officals and by the wansocal imagining of the slate made possible by viewing television, ‘conclusion In this article | have focused on discourses of comupton in public culture and vilages everyday encounters with local goverment instiutionsin order to work towardan ethnography ‘ofthe ate in contemporary Indi. Such a study raises a large numberof complex conceptual and methodological problems, of which have attempted to explore thosethat consider ceva to any understanding of sate insttutions and practices “The fstproblem has todo with the reification inherent in unitary descriptions of "he state “© |When ane analyzes the manner in which villagers and officials encounter the sae, tbecomes ‘lar that t must be conceptualized in terms far more decenalized and disaggregated than has been the case so far, Rater than take the notion of "the state” asa point of departure, we should eave open the analytical question as to the conditions under which the state does operate as 2 cohesive and unitary whole All the ethnographic data presented inthis anicle—the cases of Sharmaji Srpa, Ram Singh, and the Kisan Union, and the eponts from the vernacular press—point to a recognition of multiple agencies, organizations, levels, agendas, and centers that rests staightorward analytical closure "The second major problem addressed inthis article concerns the wansocaliy of state Insitutions. have argued that ny analysis ofthe ate equiesusto conceptualize a space that | consitued by the intersection of local, regional, national, and transnational phenomena, Accordingly, have sessed the role of public culture in the discursive constuction ofthe state. ‘Bringing the analysis public culture together withthe study ofthe everday practices oflower level ofthe bureaucracy helps us understand how the realy of anslacal etites comes tobe fel by villages and oficial. ‘The third important argument advanced in this article, aso ted tothe significance of public cule for an analysis ofthe state, has to do with the discursive constuction ofthe sate. Foregrounding the question of representation allows uso see the modalities by which the sate 292 american ethnologist ‘comes tobe imagined. Te discourse of comuption and accountability together constitute one mechanism through which the indian sate came to be dscusively constructed in public cule, 1 mast be kept in mind thatthe discourse of coruption varies a great deal from one ‘country to another, dependent a it ison particular historical rajectoies and the specific grammars of public culture. Taking the Intemational context of nationtates into account however, brings their substan silts ito sharp relief tn order that a state may legitimately representa nation inthe international system of nation states, ith 0 conform at least minimally to the requirements ofa modem nation-state, The tension between legitimacy {inthe iterstate system and autonomy and sovereignty is intensifying for naiontats with the continued movement toward an increasingly tarsnaional public sphere. The accelerating Cétclation of cultural products—television and radio programs, news, ils, videos, audio ‘recordings, books, fashions—has been predicated on gigantic shits in multinational capital ‘When this sted to the eduction of trade bares, the worlwide deb rss especially visible in Latin America, Africa, and Eastern Europe), ofshore production, andthe restructuring of markets exemplified by the European Union), 2 patern of extensive crsscrosing emerges ‘ppadutal 1990) These complex cultural and ideological ierconneetons reveal that ds ‘courses ofcomuption and hence of accountabiliy) are rom the very Begining articulated in ‘field formed by the intersection of many diferent ansnatinal forces. a shot to understand how discourses of comuption symbolically constuct the sate,” we mus inspect phenomena whose boundaries donot coincide wit those ofthe nationtate. At the same time, however, these discourses do not operate homogencously across the world. Rather, they articulate with distinctive historical rajectries to form unique hybridizations and creolizatons indifferent setings (Gupta and Ferguson 1992) ‘The fourth significant point, which atlends to the historical and cultual specify of ‘eonstuctons ofthe state, has to do with viglanoe toward the imperialism of the Wester ‘canceptl apparats, Rather than begin withthe notions of state and civil society that were forged onthe anil of European history, I focus on the modalities that enable the sae (and, simultaneously, that which i the state) tobe discursivly constructed, Looking at everyday practices, inching practices of representation, and the representations of (tat) practice in public culture helps us ave ata historically specific and ideologically constructed under- standing of “the sate” Such an analysis simultaneously considers those other groupings and Insitutions that are imagined in the processes of contestation, negotiation, and collaboration With “the sate.” There sno reason to assume that thee is, or shoud be, a unitary entity that stands apar fom, and in opposition t, “the state,” one that is mutually exclusive and oily ‘exhaustive ofthe socal space. Wha | have tried to emphasize inthis article i hat the ery ‘same processes that enable one to construct the sate aso helponeto imagine these other socal roupings—ctizens, communities (Chaterjee 1980), social groups Bourdieu 1985), coalitions, ‘lasses interest groups, civ society, polity ethnic groups, subnational groups, political pats, trade unions, and farmers organizations Fr the purposes of my argument, assembling these sr0ups into some overarching elation was unnecessary. | heefore did nt employ the notion ‘of*chl soci,” which usuallfillssuch a need, inthis analysis ofthe discourses of corruption {in india, Furthermore, iis nota concept indigenously invoked in the various processes of ‘imagining identity that Lhave described here ‘Thefinal question that this ancl addresses concems political acon and activism, concerns that should be included inthe field of applied anthvopology. Inthe context ofthe sate, the collaboration/esitance dichotomy is unhelptl in thinking of strategies for poltical stupa ‘The reason i that such a gross bifurcation does nat allow one to take advantage ofthe fat that ‘he tate isa formation that 2s Stuart Hal pus it "condenses" conraictons Hall 1981, 1986, 19866). also hides from view te fct hat there is no positon strc ouside onside the state because whats being contested ithe terrain ofthe ideological field. Any struggle against blurred boundaries 999 currently hegemonic conigurations of power and domination involvesa cultura struggle, what {Gramsci has calle the “war of postion.” What iat stake i nothing less than a wansfrmaton inthe manner in which the state comesto be consruced, Iisa struggle that problematizes the historical divide between those who choose o do political work “within” the state and those who work “ouside” it because the cultural construction ofthe sate in public culture can est from, and affect, boh in equal measure, '8y pointing outthat advocates of applied work and those who favor activi intervention may sometimes unintentionally share 2 common project of reiying “he tate” and then locating themselves with respect to that totality (the one inside, the oer outside), | neither intend ‘equate diferent modes of engagement nor to beitle the oen politically sophisticated under ‘Sandings that practitioners bring o thei actives, AI wis o emphasize is that one’s theory ‘ofthe sate” does greatly mater in fomlating strategies for political action. jst as Grams’ nation of heernony led him to believe that 1917 may have been the as European example of ‘anguardism hat he called the “war of maneuver) 50 my analysis ofthe stato” lads to the Conclusion that we can atempt to exploit the contradictory processes that go into constituting “ik These contradictions not only adds the divergent pulls exered by the multiple agencies, 1 Herel amar "Thus antiopogy, with prope to cis nthe exc nd the ranathable, has ely gored the practices of bureau. Yt his slence as Handeran has observed 3 "eatable onion (1982345), Handelmans work (1978, 1901} deeope seal mage by schol sich ‘Se Nae (1972116 say up” and ates do fr buresurai whl ednogapers such 2 oben Uig7a 983) havedane or ae nstistons seh x banks an shoal. 5. isiuld besos ha armakng a incion between an ergs! epistemology and empl raat am eiiely no srg hat arpa esearch needs be bandon The lager poet hae sgnicant or hal and archival dimension as wel 23 wider sampling ofthe variousmadia Sees Atle teas 1982 worded allots sngestve ie newpopet ‘pons cena nearer eer eee a ree oa a wot on cnet eben a ee ee ee ee ee eee ee ea eee eee rena eee ear eraee gecrbetatomncor amon iieee canis, nates teens rea Be rere es fe cece Racal ng pe otc he ees ee ee It cclen eset ttowwe uty Se eT aa here danas bane A ool rr ee eer St eee, aa eats pte mates oe ee ree cee as pete pe eR ete recs tert ule hh abr etapa ee Peper pte epitome ala Fete oortimnn Moore ee ea chute Teta oa tmnt ae macomne sunday Bg ote tog a tt ane at oreo "eich acl ec ys dea ag Posey pai ed tt ec se at pane ptr cece cena Sperone en SES TRS ISS Spee se nag gs cee ads To nea be tae tgen ape ani we mrs es pacha cere re Se ete een oe ea cand Ee aint ae se teu Mido cae Samaiodtclopealon brennan das anata Te anger pra hte elie 109,51 =the cet a wld meine attr i es at at ne ura cnte cosss eng ay onaysontrin erage sa Brera rarer el eae Sena ee ci eee Hea ee mag ure ate ee oes 2 a crnee ce SonaTese da ete ny ge Ce eee eae eee cee ann Cae eee eat hae ene earns Soe rs a eaten caeeretm aes ed Soup ny ee tees cee Bre Se cesarean poe hoe lad nae ods tee ceil teeeereunty sein etcetera Tes ore eco gh eat hls Cp kw 20 in ae eyed indi | wil eet by dian enue, a blurred boundaries 395 26, Toho ned he plans le il i edo xh toga ump se ter rae any tc dos nd mae ea, hae Sit apan unter sph ea aren a wn ea ean payaso ery en orem byrne Sf wud as tne ping dame 3h Thera pra tte sy ogy srl ray, i ew nob cee Sorar ae rane hs gerortannone nprl Ase 17 ned SERA ll sae pret aiory ota he eine ke manson inning he ns oc fr Coreg ato Nas Di say one Siesta pol 2 a sah 18" neater xanga is aie bees 999629 ind abet Shae te psec iad erage el we ‘intone ee srg hopes cnt pace res ip nda he tte site at cine ssc pve ene tue eo rte ‘hak pt in pS he nent tags abe dad oat elec ‘ip sagan ihe peace Brg svn nto ot "pc rho fury nu hen a arr mo ham rig at she We iar h Fenn eee eg Meer Sheen hc taht cal ton Sh fan ty ie be oat he Toray fan cone sant eo durch aah ato tree ‘ia tm een a or rar wih in cane. mghb wel pot ou at Reson vy an cutatiogo sipped ye pein pron nnatsy san dey one ea" ncon att npr reo SSETrciaem ana earl fr corpo a hrs sl ‘Soprano eal ef py nega ac roe hannah nena cpl antes ino aaah inte pat sete ee 4 Heald eae are ip cash Sami ne ot gency ey ns cay Se aly than coun laren ces nlp snout en re (isin era nee sngeas rcv tay nen wen ul 1 he tg hen Dre dann (00a ale 0 hve ele thor gone onsen he oan oe aon ae aap hese wea SET nema sat comands corsa ate staan uate ep and cannes er ean Sarde ecy soins cpap fag cnr omsatah es ply ely nna copra of tended en rsa wie ence ies seta SSA Se ay sol sho ve Sot col catnip ner Soro ‘anata atc, ae, onto bomen owen ome ner fees a Soe sais Se ute boone ope a be ae de “Sopa, sh nh an anon ewer bay ce slang qson sie fs rd twang tht we wold we a." cot aay le oy sds ccsbtce anda eid et rat aan "la heyy tral eee ad er mens apn ae Gin ey aero tut coe. be rp dues ho ek pace me ers bots name nmibeopris enti ile. 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