This is the first book of a trilogy where the author explores the roots and influence of European colonialism on the Indian state of Bharat. Colonisation is a process by which the people of one nation establish colonies in other societies while retaining their bonds with the parent nation, and exploit the colonised societies to benefit the parent nation and themselves. The colonial influence on the legal systems and constitution is still felt, mostly to the detriment of diversity and indigenous spirit. Traditionally, the colonies were forced to adopt legal mechanisms to preserve their integrity upon achieving independence to overcome the fissiparous tendencies created by the imposition of nation-statehood. The foremost among these was a constitution which was initially intended to be a means to forge a nation-state. This was often elevated to the status of a religious document. Judiciary in decolonized societies assumes a similar position as the Roman Catholic Church during Reformation. Instead of decentralizing morality and allowing the society’s indigenous cultural moorings to inform law and policy, blind and unthinking constitutionalism has effectively contributed to the concentration of totalizing powers over morality and world view in the hands of unelected institutions and individuals. This is a clear reference to the author’s own experience when he appeared in court to argue against the plea of feminists demanding entry into the Sabarimala temple in Kerala. This temple forbids entry of women of reproductive age based on custom and legend of the deity who is worshipped as a brahmachari. The court ruled for entry of women in an immediately stunning though eventually fruitless verdict. A society which looks at its culture and traditions through the eyes of colonizers is doomed for eternity. He presents a compelling case of how a majority section of Indians are still prisoners of the subconscious colonialism that continues to inform their beliefs and notions, explaining how suppression of indigenous beliefs and the mere desire to express native principles are increasingly labelled as “illiberal” in comparison to other countries where such expressions are celebrated as acts of courage and agency.

This is a book you will keep returning to refer in the coming decade. Whether or not you want or like, you will be pushed to take a position. I believe this volume and the two to come, will offer you wise counsel. According to the decolonial school, the celebration of the Age of Discovery by proponents of Europeanism, that is, European supremacism, is understandable because the period was preceded by the Dark Ages for a millennium for Europe. If one thinks it through, when coloniality rises, the acronym OET will have lost its first letter, because its indigenous organic past will have been slayed and put away as dead. It will have equipped itself with a single book to serve its epistemological needs and a single drill for its ritual routines. On whether you feel enriched by the breadth and depth of the OET you are heir to, or find it retrograde, depends your vulnerability to coloniality. These institutions of learning also furthered the objectives of proselytization and conversion by appealing not just to the allure of a native language but also to the innocence of an unsuspecting populace. The introduction of the Bible as a compulsory part of the curricula, bears ample testimony to this fact.Devastation of some fantasy that Bharat was scattered micro nationalities tied together only by the British (Primary sources are used) This project began with several British parliamentary debates indicating what was desired: at best, an anglophone India that would retain emotional bonds with the crown and by their god’s grace will also someday become a devotee of Christ. This is equivalent to turning post-independent India into a brown dominion with space for it on the same shelf as Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Canada. If that were not possible, then as a minimum deal, a new nation hamstrung by its own constitution. Using historical determinism for describe history through only economic criteria is oversimplification

Pros: In the initial part of the book the authors discusses Decoloniality and how it has to be applied in the Indian context. He also emphasised on need of further study of the same in the humanities. This is not objectionable. The sad and unfortunate precedent of unwarranted, interference with the religious practices continues to this day with many Governments in states such as Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh going to illogical lengths to intrude in the management of the affairs of temples by enacting the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Regulations. These statutes provide unfettered powers to the concerned State Government to assume the control, management, affairs and assets of Hindu temples. Interestingly Sai Deepak himself is at the forefront of a litigation against these draconian and anti-diluvian measures and the matter currently is pending adjudication by the Apex Court.

Reviews

With a view to ameliorating the malevolent designs of colonialism from constantly festering in the psyche of policy making mavens and the common man alike, decolonization attempts to “release production of knowledge from the stranglehold of the West, which could lead to greater diversity of thought and subjectivity, in particular, resurgence and re-existence of indigenous perspective.” The primary goals of decolonization as articulated by Sai Deepak include an untethering from the moorings of identity politics and a conclusive escape from the entrenched dogmas of exclusionary ethnocentrism (race politics in short). Till the day our judiciary relies on the definitions set by colonizers to define us, our society and our civilization we can never hope for a fair judgement. He can refer K.A.N Sastri's work on Historical method in relation to problems of South Indian history. In the final part, the author analyzes the role of Christian secularism and gives a sneak-peek into whether it had an influence during the framing of the Government of India act of 1919, which formed the basis for our constitution later. Debates and discussions in European parliament about the Company's role, later brought under the Queen's rule, are explored. They provide chilling insights into how the British empire wanted to subjugate the people of Bharat in all aspects. The European approach to look at Indic philosophies and traditions from their ethnocentric lens resulted in them superimposing their worldview on Indic traditions. While Sanatana Dharma encompasses all aspects of life, the Christian colonizer reduced it to be a "religion" of "books." We are made aware of how these standardizations and laws percolate to this day, resulting in government control of Hindu temples in a supposedly "secular" state.