Customer Reviews

Indian Controversies: Essays on Religion in Politics

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This is considered a celebrated work of Arun Shourie, and is a collection of essays and articles he wrote over the years, on topics ranging from the Ayodhya dispute, Salman Rushdie, Shah Bano controversy, etc.. The writings on the Babri Masjid proved to be prophetic, and articulate very cogently the reasons and frustrations that led to the mosque's destruction. Personally, I found the best chapter to be the one on Muslim personal law, titled 'Your Wives Are your Fields...'. This chapter outlines the present status of the Muslim Personal Law in India, the outlook the courts have taken and the absence of any leeway that courts are supposed to have in interpreting it, and the reasons behind such a mindset. Arun Shourie then proceeds to explain in detail why such positions are not justified or sustainable. This particular chapter is a must read. A must read book.

The author's views on the babri mosque dispute proved to be prophetic. "will the mosque stand?" he asks, and replies that not unless Indian politics, discourse and judicial dilly-dallying change. I recommend this book to all those intrested in understanding the politics of identity obtaining in contemporary India. Though most of the essays in the book seem to have been written almost a decade ago, they are as relevant today as they were first written.

An important book by India's greatest living journalist.