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378. Iron Lady, Velvet Glove?
Srinath Raghavan with Arun Thiruvengadam
Speakers
Was Indira Gandhi a pragmatic nation-builder or an authoritarian disruptor or both? Historian Srinath Raghavan’s new book, Indira Gandhi: The Years That Transformed India, explores her complex legacy, from her central role in reshaping India’s political structure to the controversial imposition of the Emergency.
In this conversation with constitutional scholar Arun Thiruvengadam, the session will explore the making and unmaking of democratic institutions, the long shadow of the Emergency, and the resonances of Indira’s era in the India of today. A Q&A with the audience will follow.
In this episode of BIC Talks, Srinath Raghavan will be in conversation with Arun Thiruvengadam. This is an excerpt from a conversation that took place in the BIC premises in Jun 2025.
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Speakers
Srinath Raghavan
Srinath Raghavan is a Professor of International Relations and History at Ashoka University and is the author of several books, including The Most Dangerous Place: A History of the United States in South Asia (Penguin Allen Lane, 2018), India’s War: The Making of Modern South Asia, 1939 – 1945 (Penguin Allen Lane, 2016), 1971: A Global History of the Creation of Bangladesh (Permanent Black, 2013), and War and Peace in Modern India: A Strategic History of the Nehru Years (Permanent Black, 2010).
Raghavan has also written the official history of the Kargil War for the Government of India. His book on India in the 1970s will be published in 2025. He is the recipient of the Infosys Prize for Social Sciences (2015).
Arun Thiruvengadam
Arun Thiruvengadam is a Professor of Law at the National Law School, Bangalore (“NLS”). He holds degrees in law from NLS and the New York University School of Law. He teaches and researches on Indian constitutional and regulatory law, comparative constitutional law, South Asian law and politics and welfare rights. He is the author of The Constitution of India: A Contextual Analysis (Bloomsbury UK/India, 2017), and has co-edited five other books. In 2025, he is scheduled to teach courses at the Faculty of Law, University of Zurich and the University of New South Wales Faculty of Law, Sydney.
