The authentic leader in the neoliberal times-Development, identity
dominance and the politics of “doing” in India
Abstract
What is the future of right-wing politics in India? Is India as a nation
laden in the cultural foundation of conservatism and purity or it is a
diversity moulded through the power of right-wing into a singular
cultural system? The recent crises of right-wing politics in India
founded in the new politics of social change where the historical
oppression of diverse groups based on social class, religion, gender and
caste has been politicized with new meaning under the garb of ‘doing’
development, cultural revivalism and the discourses of neoliberalism.
Present research attempt to understand how the social identity of an
authentic leader is shaped by the global neoliberal values and in what
way the preference of authentic leaders by the group is moderated by the
social class mobility and change. Also, some of the systematic attacks
on the freedom of universities gave rise to students’ politics and
movements with new vocabularies of resistance and leadership. It is need
of the time to understand the leaders conscious ‘doing’ and conscious
‘not doing’, constructing the meaning of a nation in a different way or
limiting it.