The document discusses the culture of dynastic politics in South Asia, specifically in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. It outlines some prominent political families and dynasties in each country's history. Some key aspects of dynastic politics discussed include the reliance on kinship networks rather than ideologies, the promotion of family members into political positions held by relatives, and the concentration of power within a single family. The document also provides context on the maps and borders of the Indian subcontinent over time.

1. Culture & Politics
in the
Indian Subcontinent
Anuradha Mitra Ghemawat
DAY3&4: 18 & 22 Feb2019
UB 2018-19

2. Indian Subcontinent
First proposed map in 1930s Map in 1947

3. Indian Subcontinent 1947-
1948
vINDIA (15 August 1947)
vWEST PAKISTAN (14 August 1947)
— Named PAKISTAN (1970)
vEAST PAKISTAN (14 August 1947)
— Named East Bengal (1905)
— Named BANGLADESH (1971)
vCEYLON (04 February 1948)
— named SRI LANKA (1972)

4. Culture of Dynastic Politics
— Prominent political family runs the political party in power.
— Restricts internal democracy.
— Policy-making/ leadership selection becomes a ‘family affair’.
— Clientelism **
— exchange of goods/ services for political support
— related to caste and ethnicity
— money and familial connections
Ref: **Quadir Mustaq, Abdul et al. (2013)

5. Culture of Dynastic Politics
The politician depends on
kinship networks** (not, ideologies)
to secure:
— Biradari* – association/emotional link to common
ancestor (Pakistan)
— Caste-based (India)
— Faction of society (Bangladesh, Sri Lanka)
Ref: *Chaudhry, Abid Gafoor and Aftab Ahmed (2014)

6. Jinnah-Nehru-Gandhi
Indira Gandhi
INDIRA GANDHI
NEHRU MOHANDAS K. GANDHI
JINNAH
NEHRU
GANDHI
NEHRU
JINNAH

7. Culture of Political Dynasty
INDIA
— Jawaharlal NEHRU: 1st Prime Minister
— Indira GANDHI (Nehru’s daughter): 1st woman Prime
Minister
— Rajiv GANDHI (Indira’s son): 6th Prime Minister
— Sonia GANDHI (Rajiv’s wife): President, Indian National
Congress
— Rahul GANDHI (Rajiv’s son)
— and
— Priyanka Gandhi VADRA (Rajiv’s daughter)
— A widow steps into her slain husband’s shoes (Bangladesh, India, Sri
Lanka)
— A son stepping into his slain mother’s shoes (India)

8. INDIA: A Political Dynasty

9. The Indian political dynasty
J. L. NEHRU
INDIRA GANDHI
RAJIV GANDHI
SONIA GANDHI PRIYANKA GANDHI VADRA
RAHUL GANDHI

10. The dynasty continues…
RAHUL GANDHI
‘The reluctant prince’
SANJAY, INDIRA, RAHUL
GANDHI
PRIYANKA GANDHI VADRA
SONIA GANDHI
SONIA + RAJIV
GANDHI

11. The dynasty … will it
continue??
— Resurgence of a Gandhi in India by Sushil Aaron
(NYT, 22 April 2019)
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/22/opinion/india-
election-rahul-gandhi.html
— The Gandhis will now hunt in pairs by Sushil Aaron
(The Wire, 24 Jan 2019)
https://thewire.in/politics/priyanka-gandhi-congress-
narendra-modi-amit-shah

12. Indira Gandhi
&
Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto
INDIA PAKISTAN

13. Culture of Political Dynasty
PAKISTAN
— Muhammad Ali JINNAH: 1st Governor-General & President of Assembly
— A widower stepping into his slain wife’s shoes (Pakistan)
— Zulfiqar Ali BHUTTO (assassinated, 1979): 1st Prime Minister:
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)
— Benazir BHUTTO (assassinated, 2007):
— 1st woman Prime Minister
— Inherited PPP from father, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto
— Prime Minister, Pakistan (elected twice) – clerics:
‘un-Islamic’ (i.e. head of state being a woman)
— Corruption scandals (exiled until 2007)
— Brother, Murtaza Bhutto (murdered 1996)
Bilawal Bhutto
ZARDARI
(Benazir Bhutto’s
son)
Fatima BHUTTO
(Murtaza Bhutto’s
daughter)

14. PAKISTAN:
A Political Dynasty
BENAZIR BHUTTO

15. The dynasty continues…
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari
Benazir Bhutto
Asif Ali Zardari
Fatima Bhutto,
Benazir’s niece
Benazir
Bhutto

16. Pakistan 2nd political
dynasty
Nawaz SHARIF
Maryam Nawaz SHARIF
Nawaz Sharif’s daughter
activist; politician since 2011
President
1990-93;
1997-99

17. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto
&
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
RAHMAN
BHUTTO
BANGLADESH PAKISTAN

18. BANGLADESH (1971)

19. Culture of Political Dynasty
BANGLADESH
— BANGLADESH:
— Sheikh Mujibur REHMAN: 2nd Prime Minister
— Sheikh Haseena WAZED (Rehman’s daughter): Prime
Minister, Bangladesh Awami League
— Sheikh REHANNA (Rehman’s daughter): Bangladesh
Awami League politician
— Sanjeeb WAZED Joy (Sheikh Haseena’s son):politician
— A widow steps into her slain husband’s shoes (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka)
— A daughter stepping into her slain father’s shoes (Bangladesh)

20. BANGLADESH
One Political Dynasty
Sheikh Mujibur RAHMAN: assassinated (1975) with 23
family members
SHEIKH HASINA
WAZED
daughter
SHEIKH REHANA
daughter
Prime Minister

21. BANGLADESH
Two Political Dynasties
BEGUM KHALEDA ZIA
President 1981
President 1996-2001;
2009-present
Wife of MUJIBUR REHMAN
(assassinated 1975)
Sajeeb Wazed Joy,
Rehman’s son
President 1991-1996 and 2001-
2006;
Wife of Pres. ZIAUR RAHMAN
(assassinated1981)
SHEIKH HASINA WAZED

22. BANGLADESH
politics and culture
— TWO WOMEN as party chairpersons (40+ years)
— Party Structures:
— personalized politics, i.e. persona-cum-dynasty and
policy-making
— Questions of National Identity and ‘correct’
interpretation of Islam – lead to altercations
— Focus on Political heirs:
— Ruler treats her domain as her personal property

23. Culture of Political Dynasty
SRI LANKA
— SRI LANKA:
— Solomon BANDARNAIKE: 4th Prime Minister
— Sirimavo BANDARNAIKE (Solomon’s wife): world’s 1st
female Prime Minister
— Chandrika Bandarnaike KUMARATANGA
(Bandarnaike’s daughter): 1st female President
— A widow steps into her slain husband’s shoes (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka)

24. SRI LANKA
World’s 1st female head-of-government
Sirima
Bandarnaike
Chandrika Bandarnaike
Kumaratunga
1994-2005
Solomon W. R. D.
Bandarnaike
President 1956-59 President:
1960-65;
1970-77
1994-2000

25. HW4 due 24 February 2019
Chose one English-speaking country in North America, South-East Asia or
Africa with a legacy of dynastic politics.
u Is this country’s political culture similar or different from that of India, Pakistan,
Bangladesh and/or Sri Lanka?
u What is, at least, one significant cultural difference between the dynastic
politics of the country you select and that of the Indian
subcontinent?http://thediplomat.com/2015/11/asias-political-dynasties/
http://www.sundaystandard.info/khamas-among-africa%E2%80%99s-seven-family-
political-dynasties
u Upload your research in pairs or groups, as desired, as a Word document
to the HW blog with sufficient web links and references.
u Last Name, First Name HW4: Dynastic politics (name of chosen country) OR
u GROUP# HW4: Dynastic Politics (name of chosen country)

26. Other political dynasties
— You may also wish to research in class or at home:
— Kenya: Kenyatta
— Philippines: Marcos and Aquino
— Zimbabwe: Mugabe
— Bahamas: Symonette
— USA: Kennedy family; Bush, George Herbert Walker &
George W.
— Canada: Trudeau, Pierre & Justin

27. References
1. Chaudhry, Abid Gafoor and Aftab Ahmed (2014). Biradri’s
Function and Significance: An Anthropological Study of Gender
Opinions. Sci. Int. (Lahore), Vol. 26, Issue 4, 2014
2. Khanzada, Iftikhar Tariq (2014). Dynastic Politics in the India
Subcontinent. The Guardian Liberty Voice,
16Jan2014http://guardianlv.com/2014/01/dynastic-politics-in-
the-india-subcontinent/
3. Quadir Mustaq, Abdul, M. Ibrahim and M. Kaleem (2013).
Dynastic Politics in Pakistan. Intl. Jn. of History and Research, Vol.
3, Issue 4, 13Aug2013
4. Subramanium, Nirupama (2014). When a Dynasty Read the
Future. The Hindu,
28Feb2014http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/when-a-
dynasty-read-the-future/article5733363.ece

28. Bibliography
— French, Paul (2015). Asia’s Political Dynasties. The Diplomat,
10Nov2015. http://thediplomat.com/2015/11/asias-political-
dynasties/
— Kagwanja, Peter (2015). How Dynastic Ambitions Imperil Kenya’s
Democracy. Daily Nation, 15May2015.
http://www.nation.co.ke/oped/Opinion/How-dynastic-ambitions-
imperil-Kenyas-democracy/440808-3203766-b59m0x/index.html
— PowerShow.com (2017). Political Culture. PowerPoint presentation.
http://www.powershow.com/view/a925c-
NmU1M/POLITICAL_CULTURE_powerpoint_ppt_presentation
— Sunday Standard (2015-17). Khamas amongst Africa’s Seven Family
Political Dynasties. Sunday Standard Reporter, 10 May 2015.
http://www.sundaystandard.info/khamas-among-africa%E2%80%99s-
seven-family-political-dynasties