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Democracy is widely believed to have had an unbroken run in India since 1947. Radha Kumar, independent scholar and former director-general of the Indian think tank Delhi Policy Group, challenges this view in her forthcoming book, The Republic Relearned: A Brief History of Democracy in India (Penguin Random House India, 2024). India’s democracy, she argues, experienced decay for decades, interrupted by three relatively short-lived waves of renewal.

Since the modern Indian republic can now look and act like a totalitarian regime, it appears ever more necessary to synthesize the lessons learned. What can the advocates of democracy in India learn from moments of renewal? Can a cultural ethos and institutions be rebuilt in ways from which other resilient democracies can learn? Indrani Chatterjee, John L Nau III Distinguished Professor of the History and Principles of Democracy at the University of Virginia, talks with Kumar about the potentials of a fourth wave of democratic renewal in India. 

Lunch will be available starting at 11:30 AM, with the conversation following from 12:00-1:15 PM. Parking is not available at Bond House. If you plan to drive, there is paid parking within walking distance at the Oakhurst Inn and Central Grounds Garage.

The Nau Lab's “Touchstones of Democracy” series explores key events, places, thinkers, and texts that inform the history and principles of democracy. Join us for the spring 2024 conversations, which are produced at the University of Virginia by the Karsh Institute of Democracy and the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences.