a history of personal Law in post-independence India Saxena, Saumya creator author. text bibliography enk 2022 monographic eng

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377 pages "This book demonstrates that family law, arguably the most visible sphere of such contestation, emerged as a particularly hospitable arena for conversations between religious and legal regimes, to institute the normative framework that could govern the domestic lives of citizens. The work illustrates how the codification of religious personal laws permitted the Indian state to enter into an intimate dialogue with citizens, largely mediated through religion. Thus, through this process, the state also secured monopoly over determining what constituted religion, as well as the right to determine the validity and scope of religious practices. This book therefore suggests that religious personal law played a key role in determining the legal place for religion in India's secular democracy. The controversy on the issue of personal law has contributed to a unique evolution of both the rule of law and the doctrine of secularism in twentieth century India. By tracing the response of legislature, the courts, and civil society movements to the question of cultural rights and notions of abstract citizenship, this book exhibits how the translation of marriage and divorce laws of Hindu, Muslim, and Christian communities into statutes introduced new questions on the tenuous links between the law and the sacred, as well as on the problematic rhetoric of the reformative potential of law"-- Introduction -- Personal law and the making of modern religion, 1946-56 -- Committees, codes, and customs : renegotiating personal law, 1957-69 -- Social movements, national emergency, and the custody of the Constitution, 1967-79 -- Muslim law, Hindu nationalism, and Indian secularisms, 1980-92 -- The court in context, 1992-2000s -- From the courtroom to the courtyard : the public life of personal law, 2000-present -- Conclusion. Saumya Saxena. Based on author's thesis (doctoral -- University of Cambridge, 2017) issued under title: Politics of personal law in post-independence India c.1946-2007. Includes bibliographical references and index. a-ii--- Domestic relations India Legal polycentricity India Religion and state India Muslims Legal status, laws, etc India Hindus Legal status, laws, etc India Christians Legal status, laws, etc India LAW / General LAW / General India Politics and government 1947- KNS540 .S29 2022 346.54015 SAX/D LAW000000 LAW000000 Saxena, Saumya. Cambridge, United Kingdom ; New York, NY : Cambridge University Press, 2022 (DLC) 2022020701 9781108498340 2022020700 DLC 220606 20230921155836.0 22634665 eng