CASI Election Conversations 2024: Louise Tillin on How Indian Federalism Has Evolved Under the BJP
Louise Tillin & Rohan Venkat
April 8, 2024
As millions of Indians set out to vote over the next two months, India in Transition brings you CASI Election Conversations 2024, an interview series featuring renowned scholars reflecting on the factors and dimensions of politics, political economy, and democracy that will define India’s 2024 election.
In Part 1 of the series, IiT Consulting Editor & CASI Spring 2024 Visiting Fellow Rohan Venkat speaks to Louise Tillin (King’s College London) about her research on Indian federalism—including her effort to push back against the idea that India is only “quasi-federal,” how economic considerations were a bigger factor in how India’s federal structure was designed, and how the last 10 years of centralization have shifted our understanding of India’s federal underpinnings.
CASI in the News
Rithika Kumar, 2019 CASI Travel Funds for Research winner, published "What Lies Behind India’s Rising Female Voter Turnout," an April 5, 2024 article by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Congratulations to 2024 Dean's Scholars Rashi Sabherwal (Sobti Family Fellow, 2023-24; Doctoral Candidate, Comparative Politics) and Adwaita Banerjee (2022 Summer Research Grants recipient; Doctoral Candidate, Anthropology)—each nominated for their outstanding academic performance!
CASI Welcomes Rohan Venkat and Lalitha Kamath to Penn!
Rohan Venkat (Consulting Editor, India in Transition) is in residence at CASI as a Spring 2024 Visiting Fellow until mid-May. He is currently conducting interviews for the CASI Election Conversations 2024.
Lalitha Kamath is a Spring 2024 Visiting Scholar (co-sponsored with the South Asia Center) until May 7. She is an urbanist and planner working at the intersection of urban infrastructure, urban planning and governance, and the environment.
Rukmini S. Launches "Data for India" Website
CASI Non-Resident Visiting Fellow Rukmini S. has launched Data for India, a "public platform that seeks to expand access to Indian data for everyone, and deepen the understanding of the country that can come from this data."
CASI Student Programs
Applications are OPEN for the 2024-25 Sobti Family Fellowship and the new Sobti Fieldwork Fellowship!Deadline to Apply: Monday, April 29, 2024, 11:59pm.
Read all about the CASI 2023 Summer Interns and Summer Research Grant recipients' experiences on the CASI Student Programs Blog!
Questions about CASI Student Programs?
Please contact Juni Bahuguna (Assistant Director, Student & Visitor Programs) at junib@sas.upenn.edu
Upcoming Events
April 9, 2024, 12 noon (In-Person) at College Hall 209
"Bankrolling Empire: Family Fortunes and Political Transformation in Mughal India"
A Penn Department of History Book Talk with Author Sudev Sheth Gr'18 (The Lauder Institute and CASI 2014 Travel Research Funds Graduate Student Awardee)
2023-24 CASI Seminar Series
April 11, 2024, 12 noon (In-Person) at CASI
"B. R. Ambedkar in/and America: A Reflection on Caste and Comparison"
CASI / South Asia Center / Dept. of South Asia Studies / Dept. of History Seminar with Anupama Rao (Barnard College / Columbia University)
April 25, 2024, 12 noon (In-Person) at CASI
"Complete Political Independence: The Curious Genealogy of a Nationalist Indian Demand"
CASI / South Asia Center / Dept. of South Asia Studies / Dept. of History Seminar with Mrinalini Sinha (University of Michigan)
May 2, 2024, 12 noon (In-Person) at CASI
"Bazaar: Markets and the Making of the Muslim World"
CASI / Legal History Workshop / South Asia Center / Dept. of South Asia Studies Seminar with Fahad Ahmad Bishara (University of Virginia)
CASI 2023 Data Seminar Series Videos Available
View the full videos of all 12 seminars in the CASI 2023 Data Seminar Series—hosted by CASI Non-Resident Visiting Scholar Rukmini S. (Independent Data Journalist; Founder of Data For India).
Our Campus & Regional Partners
April 15, 2024, 12 noon (VIRTUAL)
"Public Health Summer Internship in India: Adolescent Health, Nutrition, Period Poverty"
[Register]
Penn Nursing Global Bites Seminar with Nikita Patel, Nursing'24 (CASI 2022 PHFI Summer Intern)
CASI 2022-23 Annual Report
CASI's 2022-23 Annual Report is available! View our highlights from the past year and learn about some of our plans for the coming year.
Campus Location
CASI's office is located close to the heart of Penn's campus at the Ronald O. Perelman Center for Political Science & Economics at 133 South 36th Street (Suite 230) Philadelphia, PA 19104-6215.
Please note: CASI is operating on a hybrid schedule.
