Changing Nature of Populism in India

Abstract

In recent times, populism has emerged as a significant political phenomenon across the globe and influencing the prevailing political system in different ways. Therefore, Indian states are no exception. Nevertheless, nowadays, its salience is higher than ever since its reach has expanded across the globe. The Indian States are adopting and witnessing various populist measures in the policy formulation, electoral behaviour, and day-to-day functions of the government. These populist measures have a direct impact on the life of ordinary citizens and the prevailing political system. Populism as a political concept is not something that has emerged recently, but it has a very long history. However, the nature of populism has changed. Generally, the idea of populism is considered regressive, where individual leaders concentrate all the political power and create threats to democratic institutions and democratic values. But the current wave of populism that emerged in the 1990s has some distinction from the early idea of classical populism. Today’s populism is labelled as “New Populism”, which is progressive and talks about accountability, transparency, and emancipation. In this context, this paper's major aims and objectives are to analyse the changing nature of populism and its implications on ordinary citizens of India, following the interpretive approach of theoretical nuances. This paper is organised into two parts. The first part of the paper primarily focuses on the various definitions of populism and makes a distinction between Old populism and New Populism. The second part of the paper is about India’s experiences with populism, followed by the conclusion.