Indian political scientist and writer
Rajni Kothari
(16 August 1928 ? 19 January 2015) was an Indian
political scientist
,
political theorist
, academic and writer.
[1]
He was the founder of
Centre for the Study of Developing Societies
(CSDS) in 1963, a social sciences and humanities research institute, based in Delhi
[2]
and
Lokayan
(Dialogue of the People), started in 1980 as a forum for interaction between activists and intellectuals.
[3]
He was also associated with
Indian Council of Social Science Research
, International Foundation for Development Alternatives, and
People's Union for Civil Liberties
.
[4]
One of the great political thinkers of the 20th-century,
[5]
[6]
amongst his noted works include
Politics in India
(1970),
Caste in Indian Politics
(1973), and
Rethinking Democracy
(2005). In 1985, Lokayan was awarded the
Right Livelihood Award
for "linking and strengthening local groups working to protect civil liberties, women's rights and the environment."
[3]
Early life and background
[
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]
Kothari was the only son of his father, a Jain trader. His mother died early in life.
[6]
Career
[
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]
Kothari started his career as a lecturer at Baroda University (now
Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda
). While working here he first received recognition in 1961, when his essays series, "Form and Substance in Indian Politics" were published in the
Economic and Political Weekly
(then
Economic Weekly
) over six issues. He had also started writing for
Seminar
, the journal published by
Romesh Thapar
. Thereafter he was invited by Professor
Shyama Charan Dube
to become the Assistant Director of the National Institute of Community Development,
Mussoorie
.
In 1963, he moved to Delhi, where using a personal grant of Rs. 70,000 given by Professor Richard L. Park, head of
Asia Foundation
’s India chapter, he started the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), in the premises of the Indian Adult Education Association at Indraprastha Estate, Delhi, before moving to its present location in
Civil Lines, Delhi
. Here working along with
Ashis Nandy
, D.L. Sheth, Ramashray Roy, Bashiruddin Ahmed and others, pioneering works in social sciences were published over next two decades. In 1970 he published
Politics in India
, which first theorized
Indian National Congress
as a
system
rather than a party. Thereafter he published noted works like
Caste in Indian Politics
(1973) and
Footsteps into the Future
(1975).
[7]
[8]
[9]
During the early 1970s, he was associated with Congress-leader
Indira Gandhi
, and negotiated with the Congress-led central government for
Navnirman movement
, a socio-political movement of 1974 against corruption in Gujarat, which ultimately led to the dissolution of the state government. However, with the entry of
Sanjay Gandhi
, he distanced himself from Congress, and came close to
Jaya Prakash Narayan
and the
Janata Party
instead. After the
Emergency of 1975
, he moved away from political parties, and started his career as an activist. This phase culminated with the foundation of
Lokayan
- Dialogue of the People in 1980, a forum for interaction between activists, thinkers and intellectuals to talked about positive changes in the fields of religion, agriculture, health, politics, and education.
[7]
He soon became associated with
Citizens for Democracy
, and
People's Union for Civil Liberties
, a human rights body established in 1976, where he remained General Secretary from 1982 to 1984, and subsequently its President.
[10]
He served as the chairman of Indian Council of Social Science Research and remained a member of the
Planning Commission
.
[7]
Besides scholarly articles he also wrote newspaper columns, and in 2002 published his memoirs titled,
Memoirs: Uneasy is the Life of the Mind
.
[7]
In his final book,
Rethinking Democracy
(2005), Kothari explored the possible meanings of
democracy
. An excerpt from the book was later included in the first volume of
India Since the 90s
series,
The Hunger of the Republic: Our Present in Retrospect
, edited by
Ashish Rajadhyaksha
.
[11]
CSDS where he was an honorary fellow,
[2]
in 2004 established
The Rajni Kothari Chair in Democracy
in his honour, funded by
Ford Foundation
and the
Sir Ratan Tata Trust
.
[12]
On 27 November 2012, CSDS celebrated its 50th anniversary, presided over by Kothari.
[13]
Personal life
[
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]
He married in 1947, and his wife Hansa died in 1999.
[9]
In his final years, his eldest son Smitu died in 2009.
[14]
[15]
Smitu, trained in physics, communications and sociology, was involved in ecological, cultural and human rights issues. He had been a visiting professor at Cornell and Princeton Universities.Rajni Kothari had two other sons,
Miloon
and
Ashish
, and two grandchildren, Emma and Gyan.
Death
[
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]
He died on 19 January 2015 at his residence at Patparganj in East Delhi following urinary tract infection and other age related ailments.
[16]
[17]
Works
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]
References
[
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External links
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International
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National
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People
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Other
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