1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910157411503321

Autore

Vaishnav Milan

Titolo

When crime pays : money and muscle in Indian politics / / Milan Vaishnav

Pubbl/distr/stampa

New Haven, CT : , : Yale University Press, , [2017]

©2017

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (435 pages)

Disciplina

364.13230954

Soggetti

Political corruption - India

HISTORY / Modern / 21st Century

India Politics and government 21st century

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Includes index.

Nota di contenuto

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- Note to Readers -- PART I -- 1. Lawmakers and Lawbreakers: The Puzzle of Indian Democracy -- 2. The Rise of the Rents Raj: India's Corruption Ecosystem -- PART II -- 3. Criminal Enterprise: Why Criminals Joined Politics -- 4. The Costs of Democracy: How Money Fuels Muscle in Elections -- 5. Doing Good by Doing Bad: The Demand for Criminality -- 6. The Salience of Social Divisions: How Context Shapes Criminality -- PART III -- 7. Crime without Punishment: From Deep Roots to Proximate Causes -- 8. An Entrenched Marketplace: Rethinking Democratic Accountability -- Appendix A: Details of the Affidavit Dataset -- Appendix B: Details of Bihar Voter Survey -- Appendix C: Details of Lok Social Attitudes Survey -- Notes -- Index

Sommario/riassunto

The first thorough study of the co-existence of crime and democratic processes in Indian politics   In India, the world's largest democracy, the symbiotic relationship between crime and politics raises complex questions. For instance, how can free and fair democratic processes exist alongside rampant criminality? Why do political parties recruit candidates with reputations for wrongdoing? Why are one-third of state and national legislators elected-and often re-elected-in spite of



criminal charges pending against them? In this eye-opening study, political scientist Milan Vaishnav mines a rich array of sources, including fieldwork on political campaigns and interviews with candidates, party workers, and voters, large surveys, and an original database on politicians' backgrounds to offer the first comprehensive study of an issue that has implications for the study of democracy both within and beyond India's borders.