BradyGregg4996 at 02:11, 20 January 2026

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{{Short description|Indian academic}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox academic
|honorific_prefix=
|name=Ajay Gudavarthy
|image=
|spouse=
|notable_works=Maoism, Democracy and Globalisation
Cross-currents in Indian Politics; Politics of Post-Civil Society: Contemporary History of Political Movements in India.
|thesis_title=Fragmentation and Solidarity: A Study of Caste, Class and Gender Movements in Andhra Pradesh
|thesis_year=2003
|workplaces=[[Jawaharlal Nehru University]], [[National Law School of India University]], [[National University of Juridical Sciences]]}}
'''Ajay Gudavarthy''' is a political theorist, analyst and columnist in India.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Chakraborty|first=Parthiv|date=2020-08-06|title=Modern Politics in India - Prof. Ajay Gudavarthy's interview|url=https://www.easternherald.com/2020/08/06/modern-politics-india/|access-date=2021-05-31|website=The Eastern Herald|language=en-US}}</ref> He is associate professor in political science at Centre for Political Studies, [[Jawaharlal Nehru University]], [[New Delhi]].

== Education and family ==
Ajay Gudavarthy is the son of Prof G. Haragopal, an activist in the [[civil rights movement]] and former dean of [[University of Hyderabad]].{{cn|date=June 2021}}

Gudavarthy completed his PhD in 2002 from the Centre for Political Studies, [[Jawaharlal Nehru University]], New Delhi under the supervision of Gurpreet Mahajan.<ref name=":9">{{Cite journal|last=Ajay|first=G.|date=2002|title=Fragmentation and solidarity : a study of caste, class and gender movements in Andhra Pradesh, 1985 to 95|url=http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in:8080/jspui/handle/10603/21044|journal=INFLIBNET|language=English}}</ref> His thesis was titled as "Fragmentation and Solidarity: A Study of Caste, Class and Gender Movements in Andhra Pradesh," which was a study of the interface between the three political movements, in light of new theoretical frameworks, with special reference to Critical Theory and Post-Marxism.<ref name=":9" />

== Career ==
Gudavarthy's first teaching assignment was at the [[National University of Juridical Sciences]], Calcutta from 2001 to 2003. He then taught as assistant professor at the [[National Law School of India University]], Bangalore from 2003 to 2006.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Gudavarthy|first=Ajay|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CxlBDwAAQBAJ|title=Maoism, Democracy and Globalisation: Cross-currents in Indian Politics|date=2014-06-15|publisher=SAGE Publishing India|isbn=978-93-5150-425-2|language=en}}</ref> He joined Centre for Political Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi in 2006. In 2008, he was Charles Wallace Visiting Fellow, the [[SOAS University of London|School of Oriental and African Studies]] (SOAS), London.<ref name=":0" /> He was a visiting fellow, [[Goldsmiths, University of London|Goldsmith College, University of London]] in 2010 and Visiting Faculty at Centre for Human Rights, [[University of Hyderabad]] in 2011.<ref name=":0" /> He had been a visiting fellow at Centre for Citizenship, Civil society and Rule of Law, [[University of Aberdeen]] in 2012.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|last=Bloomsbury.com|title=Bloomsbury - Ajay Gudavarthy - Ajay Gudavarthy|url=https://www.bloomsbury.com/author/ajay-gudavarthy|access-date=2021-05-31|website=www.bloomsbury.com|language=en}}</ref>

== Contributions to Indian political studies ==

=== Secular sectarianism ===
Gudavarthy coined the term '''secular sectarianism''', in his book ''Secular Sectarianism: Limits of Subaltern Politics.''<ref name=":10">{{Cite web|date=2021-05-11|title=Secular Sectarianism|url=https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/secular-sectarianism/book271597|access-date=2021-05-31|website=SAGE Publications Inc|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The NLS Public Lecture Series {{!}} Sectarian Secularism: Limits of Subaltern Politics|url=https://www.nls.ac.in/news-events/the-nls-public-lecture-series-sectarian-secularism-limits-of-subaltern-politics/|access-date=2021-05-31|website=National Law School of India University|language=en-US}}</ref> He conceptualizes secular sectarianism as a social condition in which those groups that attained social mobility, attempts to actively prevent the mobility of other marginalised social groups below them in hierarchy.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Service|first=Tribune News|title=What secularism doesn't guarantee|url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/reviews/story/what-secularism-doesnt-guarantee-95574|access-date=2021-06-01|website=Tribuneindia News Service|language=en}}</ref> He identifies the sub-caste conflicts among Dalits, Tribals, Other Backward Classes (OBC's ) in India and remarks it as the axes of intra-subaltern social conflict.<ref name=":11">{{Cite web|date=2021-05-16|title=Were Indian Elites Ever Secular Enough?|url=https://www.newsclick.in/were-indian-elites-ever-secular-enough|access-date=2021-06-01|website=NewsClick|language=en}}</ref> He also views certain Muslim groups as steadfast in maintaining their [[social conservatism]] and refusing the policies of affirmative actions in minority institutions, marking the intra-subaltern social conflict.<ref name=":11" />

=== Right wing populism ===
Gudavarthy's book ''India After Modi: Populism and the Right'' is considered the first theoretical study of right-wing populism in India from within the left-liberal intellectual tradition.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Ashraf|first=Ajaz|title=Left-liberals don't really understand right-wing populism – and have no effective way to counter it|url=https://scroll.in/article/904268/left-liberals-dont-really-understand-right-wing-populism-and-have-no-effective-counter-to-it|access-date=2021-05-31|website=Scroll.in|language=en-US}}</ref> In the special issue on Populism by academic journal ''Kairos: A Journal of Critical Symposium'', his work was featured for Book Forum discussion, and scholars including Samir Gandesha, Anup Dhar, Deepanshu Mohan, Abhay Amal, Vikas Pathak and Prakash Kashwan engaged conceptually and critically with the book.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Vol. 5 No. 1 (2020): Special Issue: Populism in the Postcolony. Texts, Contexts and Media {{!}} Kairos: A Journal of Critical Symposium|url=http://kairostext.in/index.php/kairostext/issue/view/8|access-date=2021-05-31|website=kairostext.in}}</ref>

Gudavarthy had identified a convergence that is taking place in socio-political domain, including "the neo-liberal turn in the economy, a populist turn in democracy and a certain kind of enculturalisation mediatization in social and cultural realm."<ref name=":4">{{Cite web|date=2019-07-30|title=Book Review: Dynamics of Right-Wing Populism and its Implications for Indian Democracy|url=https://countercurrents.org/2019/07/book-review-dynamics-of-right-wing-populism-and-its-implications-for-indian-democracy/|access-date=2021-05-31|website=Countercurrents|language=en-US}}</ref> He believes that media plays significant role in this shift, particularly from data, evidence, and empirical accuracy to symbolic power.<ref name=":4" /> He also argued that Bharatiya Janata Party in 1990's and post-2016, though looks similar, but is vastly different in nature. He defined this disparity in terms of the BJP's acceptability.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|last=J Antony|first=Navin|title=The metamorphosis|url=https://www.theweek.in/theweek/cover/2019/12/20/the-metamorphosis.html|access-date=2021-05-31|website=The Week|language=en}}</ref> He said, "Vajpayee belonged to an era when the consent for hindutva politics was very limited, so he projected himself as the BJP’s Nehruvian face—as someone who was more accommodative—because he knew that popular consent was for the Congress style of politics."<ref name=":3" />

== Selected works ==
* Secular Sectarianism: Limits of Subaltern Politics, ([[SAGE Publications]]: 2019).<ref name=":10" />
*Re-framing Democracy and Agency in India: Interrogating Political Society, ([[SAGE Publications]]: 2013).<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Gudavarthy|first=Ajay|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1rI1DgAAQBAJ|title=Re-framing Democracy and Agency in India: Interrogating Political Society|date=2012-03-01|publisher=Anthem Press|isbn=978-0-85728-946-9|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-05-11|title=Gudavarthy, Ajay|url=https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/author/ajay-gudavarthy|access-date=2021-05-31|website=SAGE Publications Inc|language=en}}</ref>
*Maoism, Democracy and Globalisation: Cross-currents in Indian Politics, ([[SAGE Publications]], 2014).<ref name=":0" />
* Politics of Post-civil Society: Contemporary History of Political Movements in India ([[SAGE Publications]], 2013).<ref>{{Cite book|last=Gudavarthy|first=Ajay|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cJyHAwAAQBAJ|title=Politics of Post-Civil Society: Contemporary History of Political Movements in India|date=2013-01-24|publisher=SAGE Publications India|isbn=978-81-321-1322-5|language=en}}</ref>
*Revolutionary Violence Versus Democracy: Narratives from India, ([[SAGE Publications]], 2017).<ref>{{Cite book|last=Gudavarthy|first=Ajay|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-xtBDwAAQBAJ|title=Revolutionary Violence Versus Democracy: Narratives from India|date=2017-09-25|publisher=SAGE Publishing India|isbn=978-93-86446-97-8|language=en}}</ref>
*India After Modi: Populism and the Right, ([[Bloomsbury Publishing]] : 2018).<ref>{{Cite book|last=Gudavarthy|first=Ajay|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a-X_wQEACAAJ|title=India After Modi: Populism and the Right|date=2019|publisher=Bloomsbury|isbn=978-93-88038-81-2|language=en}}</ref>
*Cultural Politics of Modern India, (Aakar Publication: 2015).<ref>{{Cite book|last=Gudavarthy|first=Ajay|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ue5EjwEACAAJ|title=Cultural Politics of Modern India|date=2015|publisher=Aakar |isbn=978-93-5002-383-9|language=en}}</ref>
He has more than 50 scholarly articles in Indian and International academic Journals.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2015-06-05|title=Ajay Gudavarthy|url=https://www.epw.in/author/ajay-gudavarthy|access-date=2021-05-31|website=Economic and Political Weekly|language=en}}</ref> He wrote a Hindi book, ''Bharat mein Rajneetik Andolano ka Samkaleen Itihaas: Nagrik Samaj ke baad ki rajneeti'', ([[SAGE Publications]]: 2018), to uncover major concepts in political studies for vernacular students.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Gudavarthy|first=Ajay|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0zhODwAAQBAJ|title=Bharat mein Rajneetik Andolano ka Samkaleen Itihaas: Nagrik Samaj ke baad ki rajneeti|date=2018-01-31|publisher=SAGE Publishing India|isbn=978-93-5280-584-6|language=hi}}</ref>

== Activism ==
Gudavarthy has appeared in visual and print media including [[Al Jazeera Media Network|Al Jazeera]], [[US News]] and [[TRT World|TR TWorld]] as a political commentator on India specific issues.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web|last=Sarkar|first=Sonia|title=Indian doctors face censorship, attacks as they fight coronavirus|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/4/13/indian-doctors-face-censorship-attacks-as-they-fight-coronavirus|access-date=2021-05-31|website=www.aljazeera.com|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":7">{{Cite web|title=India's Hindu nationalist regime near-decimates its secular opposition|url=https://www.trtworld.com/opinion/india-s-hindu-nationalist-regime-near-decimates-its-secular-opposition-28642|access-date=2021-05-31|website=India's Hindu nationalist regime near-decimates its secular opposition|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Kumar|first=Aravind|date=31 January 2021|title=Can a Dalit man and an upper-caste woman be in love? Another thing Tandav gets wrong|url=https://theprint.in/opinion/can-dalit-man-and-upper-caste-woman-be-in-love-what-tandav-gets-wrong/594682/|website=The Print}}</ref><ref name=":8">{{Cite web|last=Anand|first=Shefali|date=23 December 2020|title=Modi's Biggest Challenge Comes from the Farms|url=https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/2020-12-23/farmer-protests-pose-biggest-test-for-modi-government|website=US News}}</ref> He also takes political position about contemporary Indian politics and governments and writes in the editorials of Indian newspapers including [[The Indian Express]], [[The Hindu]], [[The Times of India]], [[The Wire (India)|The Wire]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2016-02-19|title=Ajay Gudavarthy|url=https://indianexpress.com/profile/author/ajay-gudavarthy/|access-date=2021-05-31|website=The Indian Express|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Ajay Gudavarthy Blog|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/author/ajay-gudavarthy/?source=app&frmapp=yes|access-date=2021-05-31|website=Times of India Blog|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Ajay Gudavarthy : Exclusive News Stories by Ajay Gudavarthy on Current Affairs, Events at The Wire|url=https://thewire.in/author/ajay-gudavarthy|access-date=2021-05-31|website=The Wire}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Ajay Gudavarthy|url=https://www.thehindu.com/profile/contributor/Ajay-Gudavarthy-28323/|access-date=2021-05-31|website=The Hindu|language=en}}</ref>

He came out in Solidarity with [[Anand Teltumbde]] and [[Gautam Navlakha]] and condemned their arrest in Elgar Parishad case.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|date=2020-03-22|title=Stand in Solidarity with Anand Teltumbde and Gautam Navlakha|url=https://indianculturalforum.in/2020/03/22/stand-in-solidarity-with-anand-teltumbde-and-gautam-navlakha/|access-date=2021-05-31|website=Indian Cultural Forum|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Why We Must Defend Anand Teltumbde|url=https://thewire.in/rights/why-we-must-defend-anand-teltumbde|access-date=2021-05-31|website=The Wire}}</ref> He was one of the signatories that urged democratic organizations and individuals to stand against the oppressive move by Indian government to curb the voices of dissent.<ref name=":2" /> He condemned the authoritarian turmoil in Indian campuses (e.g. Jawaharlal Nehru University, [[Delhi University]] and University of Hyderabad).<ref>{{Cite web|last=sandip|title=Populism and Education: the Indian and Turkish Perspectives|url=https://www.asiainglobalaffairs.in/dialogue/populism-and-education-the-indian-and-turkish-perspectives/|access-date=2021-05-31|website=Asia in Global Affairs|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Democracy and the taste of fear|url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/opinion/democracy-and-the-taste-of-fear/cid/1747097|access-date=2021-05-31|website=www.telegraphindia.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2016-10-26|title=An Appeal from the JNU Faculty: the Politics of Polarisation in the Campus Must Stop!|url=https://www.indiaresists.com/appeal-jnu-faculty-politics-polarisation-campus-must-stop/|access-date=2021-05-31|website=India Resists|language=en-US|archive-date=11 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210311115805/https://www.indiaresists.com/appeal-jnu-faculty-politics-polarisation-campus-must-stop/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

He criticized the Maoists movement in India for ignoring the cultural part in revolution and argued that legitimacy of the state as it exists today can be only undermined by working through the cultural idiom.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Ashraf|first=Ajaz|title=Interview: Why are the BJP and RSS (and the Indian state) obsessed by 'Urban Naxals'?|url=https://scroll.in/article/897506/interview-why-are-the-bjp-and-rss-and-the-indian-state-obsessed-by-urban-naxals|access-date=2021-05-31|website=Scroll.in|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Prakash|first=Om|date=2015-12-01|title=Book Review: Ajay Gudavarthy, Maoism, Democracy and Globalisation: Cross-currents in Indian Politics|url=https://doi.org/10.1177/2321023015601752|journal=Studies in Indian Politics|language=en|volume=3|issue=2|pages=296–298|doi=10.1177/2321023015601752|s2cid=157658807|issn=2321-0230|url-access=subscription}}</ref> He criticised the elitism of national law schools in India and spoke against the stigmatization of reservation (affirmative action) in such institutions.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Agrawal|first=Anuj|title="Elites in India define themselves by social separation " – Assistant Professor Ajay Gudavarthy|url=https://www.barandbench.com/interviews/elites-india-define-themselves-social-separation-assistant-professor-ajay-gudavarthy|access-date=2021-05-31|website=Bar and Bench - Indian Legal news|language=en}}</ref> He argued that Indian Muslims face marginalisation in social, economic and political spheres.<ref>{{Cite web|title='Muslims Have Become New Subalterns' Interview with JNU Prof. Ajay Gudavarthy by Mishab Irikkur and Abhay Kumar|url=https://www.countercurrents.org/akumar200814.htm|access-date=2021-05-31|website=www.countercurrents.org}}</ref>

He attacked the [[Bharatiya Janata Party]] for misusing premier investigating agencies such as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to pursue cases against those who are not willing to toe their line.<ref name=":7" /> He said that they use the combination of ‘money’ and lawsuits to either buy or intimidate the legislators from other political parties.<ref name=":7" /> He viewed farmers protest against prime minister Modi as an example of 'legitimacy crisis.'<ref name=":8" /> He also criticized [[Premiership of Narendra Modi|Modi government]] for censoring doctors during covid pandemic and alleged that government was attempting to create "a sense of false self-image that covers up its limitations".<ref name=":5" /> He slammed [[Prahlad Singh Patel|Prahlad Patel]], the Union minister of state for culture for the complaint about the insult to the Tricolour inflicted by Delhi chief minister [[Arvind Kejriwal]] during his daily webcasts during the pandemic.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web|title=Arvind Kejriwal insulted Indian flag, complains Prahlad Patel|url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/prahlad-patel-complains-about-the-insult-to-the-the-indian-flag-inflicted-by-kejriwal/cid/1817059|access-date=2021-05-31|website=www.telegraphindia.com}}</ref> He said, "its just another diversion from the pandemic for which people are deeply disturbed, especially in BJP-ruled states like Uttar Pradesh which go to the polls next year."<ref name=":6" />

=== Criticism ===
Gudavarthy faced criticism for his remarks that Dalit politics is taking a ‘rightward shift’ in India.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Mhaskar|first=Sumeet|title=No Right Turn|url=https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/no-right-turn/292290|access-date=2021-05-31|website=Outlook India}}</ref> His contrasting of farm protests with the [[Citizenship Amendment Act protests|anti-CAA movement]] and the argument that the latter failed to appeal to a majority of Indians since its concerns remained uniquely centred around Muslims, was criticized for putting the onus and blame for not receiving wider ‘moral acceptability’ on the on survivors of majoritarian violence in India.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Snehashish Das|first=Sabah Maharaj|title=Cultivating Morality In A Broken Democracy|url=https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/opinion-cultivating-morality-in-a-broken-democracy/376417|access-date=2021-05-31|website=Outlook India}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Debate: The Real Reason Why Farmers' and Anti-CAA Protests Have Been Perceived Differently|url=https://thewire.in/rights/farmers-anti-caa-protests-muslim-sikh-identity-hindu-nationalism|access-date=2021-05-31|website=The Wire}}</ref>

== References ==
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[[Category:Centre for Political Studies (CPS), Jawaharlal Nehru University]]
[[Category:Academic staff of Jawaharlal Nehru University]]
[[Category:Indian non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:Living people]]

Ajay Gudavarthy - Revision history

BradyGregg4996 at 02:11, 20 January 2026