ABSTRACT:
Communalism is commonly understood as an inevitable product of poisonous blend of politics with religion or “politicization of religion”. In this paradigm, the politics of religion is held as sole factor behind both the construction of communal consciousness and its externalization in the form of communal violence/ clashes. Such flimsy understanding does not consider other factors that play very crucial role in this regard. However, in Indian context, communal consciousness is a product meant for political consumption. To acquire political power in India, right-wing parties rely heavily on the politics of polarization and in this respect, they are aided by the forces of globalization and the media. As such, any straightforward generalization like the aforementioned one, could not provide us any insight that is required to comprehend the issue in question. Thus, a comprehensive approach becomes an imperative in order to grasp the issue in question in its totality. Communal consciousness is constructed/ produced which involves several structures, institutions and actors. These structures, institutions and actors differ from place to place and also from time to time. This research paper aims to deconstruct the process of the construction of communal consciousness in post-independence India by considering the roles played by castization of politics; globalization and the media.
Cite this article:
Mohammad Azaharuddin Ansari. Explaining Communal Consciousness in Independent India: Taking Stock of Castization of Politics; Globalization and the Media. Res. J. Humanities and Social Sciences. 2018; 9(1): 269-276. doi: 10.5958/2321-5828.2018.00049.9
Cite(Electronic):
Mohammad Azaharuddin Ansari. Explaining Communal Consciousness in Independent India: Taking Stock of Castization of Politics; Globalization and the Media. Res. J. Humanities and Social Sciences. 2018; 9(1): 269-276. doi: 10.5958/2321-5828.2018.00049.9 Available on: https://rjhssonline.com/AbstractView.aspx?PID=2018-9-1-49