Toward a free economy : Swatantra and opposition politics in democratic India

Introduction :"You, Too Can Be an Economist" Part I: Situating Free Economy 1. Making a New India: Dreams, Accomplishments, Disappointments, circa 1940-70 2. Indian Libertarians and the Birth of Free Economy Part II: People, Ideas, Practices 3. Conservative Opposition to the "Permit-and-License Raj" 4. Beyond Ghosts: Visions and Scales of Free Economies Part III: Party Politics 5. Communicating and Mobilizing: Free Economy as Opposition 6. Against the Tide: Swatantra in Office and Memory

This book explores the evolution of economic conservatism in postcolonial India, focusing on the Swatantra Party, which emerged after the British left India. This party, which opposed the Indian National Congress Party, promised a "free economy" through opposition politics. The "free economy" took on various meanings and was influenced by communities in southern and western India, promoting anticommunism, private economic activity, decentralized development, and private property defense. This perspective broadens our understanding of neoliberalism, democracy, and the postcolonial world.