The best and most comprehensive book on the Emergency. [ Indias First Dictatorship is] to be commended, not just for [ its] extensive research and intellectual sweep, but because of [ its] contemporary relevance Indeed, [ its] studied analysis that the worlds largest democracy is fundamentally vulnerable to despotic rule will no doubt provide fresh insights on the current Indian political landscape, which many believe is under an undeclared Emergency. -- India Today 'Detailed and fascinating.' -- The Wire 'A timely reminder that Indias hard-won democratic ethos cannot be taken for granted. [ Indias First Dictatorship] is a compelling account, which displays an extraordinary grasp of the political milieu that led to the state of emergency and provides a level of detail about its consequences never before attempted.' -- Foreign Policy 'Represents a yet unmatched attempt to convey the elements of the Emergency in their many-sided complexity.' -- Los Angeles Review of Books 'A tour de force... Christophe Jaffrelot and Pratinav Anil's 'India's First Dictatorship: The Emergency, 1975-77' shows how the Emergency has cast a long shadow and is also a window into understanding some of the present trends in Indian politics.' -- Pacific Affairs This book rightly claims that this specific study of Emergency helps looking at Indian history through different lenses where the subordinated and oppressed citizenry are always at loggerheads. This is the history of a constant struggle between the people on the one hand and the Republics rulers on the other. Indeed, this excellent volume does live up to this claim very well. Offers a meticulous and convincing analysis of the Emergency, but also does more than that. The suspension of democracy in India is used as a lens to understand the maladies and weaknesses of Indias democracy and to remind the contemporary reader that the brief authoritarian interlude of the 1970s might not have been Indias first and last dictatorship. -- The Bookshelf [ Christophe Jaffrelot and Pratinav Anil] must be complimented for pointing out among other things that democracy had not then, and still has not, become as deep-rooted in India as is necessary for it to strengthen the institutions of the state and benefit all sections of the people [ Indias First Dictatorship] is a welcome addition to the existing material, most of which either tends to glorify the emergency and play down its excesses, or to vilify the principal participants in that sorry episode of Indian history. -- The Commonwealth Lawyer [ A] rigorous and meticulous work of contemporary history that combines empirical and theoretical strengths in its analysis of one of the seminal events in the Indian republics political development. -- Karwaan 'Jaffrelot and Anil present a comprehensive account of the suspension of formal democracy in India. A sharp analytical assessment of the Emergency, it is bold, original and well-researched. This promises to be a landmark work in Indian politics.' -- Uday Chandra, Assistant Professor of Government, Georgetown University, Qatar, and co-editor of 'Staking Claims: The Politics of Social Movements in Contemporary Rural India' 'The best and most wide-ranging account of the Emergency in India. It is a ground-breaking contribution to the study of Indian politics and political history. Widely and deeply researched, comprehensive and analytical.' -- Srinath Raghavan, Professor of International Relations and History, Ashoka University, and Senior Fellow, Carnegie India 'Jaffrelot and Anils meticulously researched account of Indias brief period of authoritarian Emergency rule in 1975-77 rightly approaches it not as an aberration, but as a product of the ambiguity of Indian democracy. Engaging and authoritative--it could prove definitive.' -- James Chiriyankandath, Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Commonwealth Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London 'Jaffrelot and Anil bring a rare depth of scholarship and nuanced analysis to their remarkable account of Indias Emergency. Drawing upon an unparalleled range of sources, this book is indispensable for anyone seeking to understand global authoritarianism and Indian politics today.' -- Rochana Bajpai, Associate Professor in Politics, SOAS University of London, and author of 'Debating Difference: Group Rights and Liberal Democracy in India'
