Dr Pavithra Suryanarayan

This course is available on the MSc in Political Science (Conflict Studies and Comparative Politics), MSc in Political Science (Global Politics), MSc in Political Science (Political Behaviour), MSc in Political Science (Political Science and Political Economy) and MSc in Public Policy and Administration. This course is freely available as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit. It does not require permission. This course uses controlled access as part of the course selection process. For information on controlled access courses, including eligibility, application processes, deadlines, and departmental contact details, please refer to the Controlled Access Courses webpage.

How to apply: To apply for a place on this course, please submit a short statement of no more than 200 words via LfY. Your statement should outline your reasons for applying and explain how the course will support your academic and/or career goals. If applicable, you should also demonstrate how you meet any pre-requisites listed in the course guide. If the course is compulsory for your programme, no written statement is required.

Priority for places on Government (GV) courses will be given first to students for whom the course is compulsory. Where applicable, priority will then be given to students on the Department of Government programmes listed in the ‘Availability’ section of the course guide, followed by students on other programmes listed in that section. Students on all other programmes will be considered next, where a course is available as an outside option. You should ensure that you meet any pre-requisites listed in the course guide before applying. Places on capped courses cannot be guaranteed. Where a course is oversubscribed, places will be allocated based on programme priority and the written statement.

Deadline for applications: The deadline for applications is 12:00 noon on Friday 25 September 2026. You can expect to be informed of the outcome of your application by 12:00 noon on Monday 28 September 2026. Any places remaining after this date will be allocated based on priority and written statement - up until course selection closes.

For queries contact: gov.msc@lse.ac.uk.

The course will be capped at 1 group. Students from the Department of Government's Conflict and Comparative stream will get first preference, followed by other Government master's streams, followed by students from International Development, International Relations, and the School of Public Policy.

India is the world’s largest democracy and its second most populous country. This course introduces core issues in the study of contemporary Indian politics. The class is organized around the following topics:

 - Colonial institutions and India's journey to Independence;

- The consolidation of democracy in the early decades;

- The relationship between the state and the economy;

- The state’s institutional architecture;

- How political parties and electoral campaigns operate; 

- The role of caste, religion, gender and the urban/rural divide in shaping politics;

- Affirmative action and the rise of development in India; and

- The issues of corruption, criminality and dynastic politics.

The focus is on building knowledge and understanding of the Indian case. But we will also consider to what extent India’s experience is reflective of more general theories of politics, and how theories might change in order to accommodate what India can teach us. Class sessions will be interactive, with plenty of opportunity for group discussion.

20 hours of seminars in the Winter Term.

This course has a reading week in Week 6 of Winter Term.

Report (1000 words).

Abstract (250 words).

One 1,000-word response paper written for the week that the students serve as discussant in class. The lecturer will assign which week the student will write about.

One 250-word abstract for the final essay. In the last class meeting of term, each student will give a 5-minute overview of their plans for the final essay to solicit feedback from the class.

• Wilkinson, Steven. 2015.  Army and Nation - The Military and Indian Democracy since Independence. Harvard University Press. Chapter 1.
• Potter, D. (1996) India’s Political Administrators. Chapter 1.
• Prakash, Gyan (2019). Emergency Chronicles: Indira Gandhi and Democracy’s Turning Point. Princeton University Press. Chapter 5, “Lawful Suspension of Law". 

• Kothari, R. (1964). "The Congress' System in India." Asian Survey: 1161-1173.
• Desai, M. (2001). “Party Formation, Political Power, and the Capacity for Reform,” Social Forces, 80(1): 37-60.
• Sridharan, E. (2002). "The Fragmentation of the Indian Party System, 1952-1999: Seven  Competing Explanations." in Jayal and Mehta (eds.) The Oxford Companion to Politics in India.
• Chhibber, Pradeep, Francesca Refsum Jensenius and Pavithra Suryanarayan (2014). "Party Organization and Party Proliferation in India," Party Politics, 20(4): 489-505.
• Weiner, Myron. 2001. “The Struggle for Equality: Caste in Indian Politics,” in Atul 
Kohli, Ed. The Success of India’s Democracy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 
pp. 193-225. 

• Chandra, K. (2000). "The transformation of ethnic politics in India: The decline of Congress and the rise of the Bahujan Samaj Party in Hoshiarpur." Journal Of Asian Studies-Ann  Arbor, 59(1): 26-61.
• Huber, John and Pavithra Suryanarayan. Ethnic Inequality and the Ethnification of Political Parties: Evidence from India. Manuscript.

Essay (85%, 4000 words) in Spring Term Week 1.

Blog post (15%) weekly.

A 4,000-word final essay based on a topic on India.

Weekly blog posts (150 words each) to be submitted by 10pm the night before class.