Interventionism | Promotion of Western-Style Democracy Has Encouraged Violence

When I visited India [in 1990], two disputes dominated the news there. One involved demonstrations and riots by students opposing a plan by the government of then–Prime Minister V.P. Singh to set aside a certain proportion of government jobs for the disadvantaged—“scheduled castes” (untouchables), “scheduled tribes” and “other backward classes.” Over a period of several weeks some 160 young men and women, apparently members of higher castes who feared that their own employment opportunities would be diminished, tried to burn themselves to death in protest.

...

[The entire page is 1013 words long]

Join eNotes

The above is a free excerpt. Get total access to this content with the: