Ethnocracy in Deeply Divided Societies: The Dynamics of Ethnopolitics in Manipur
in Jelle JP Wouters (Ed.). Vernacular Politics in Northeast India: Democracy, Ethnicity, and Indigeneity. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2022, pp. 175-198. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780192863461.003.0007
This chapter examines the dynamics of ethnopolitics in Manipur particularly how the state fallsinto ‘ethnocracy trap’ and thus perpetuate ethnocratic regimes. Rather than looking into thedemand for internal autonomy within the sub-national state by minority groups, the ethnocratic state has been trying to achieve instrumental ends. The denial of ‘delimitation’ and the SixthSchedule demand in the state has sharpened divisions. The future of the state depends on howethnic aspirations are negotiated and accommodated, and the management of diversity.