In 1931, Mahatma Gandhi visited Chatham House as part of his campaign for Indian independence. Addressing an overflowing hall, he described the poverty and the religious conflict that plagued India at the time.
Today, India is the world’s fifth largest economy and more than 270 million people have been lifted out of poverty in just a decade. But poverty in India remains widespread and the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic is only expected to exacerbate the situation. Meanwhile, the communal violence that erupted in Delhi earlier this year reflects intensifying religious tensions under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
This event is part of a series, held in the context of the Chatham House Centenary in 2020, bringing together historians, practitioners and current policymakers to discuss contemporary problems of international relations.
Participants
Kapil Komireddi, Journalist; Author, Malevolent Republic: A Short History of the New India
Gitika Bhardwaj, Editor, Communications & Publishing, Chatham House
Chair: Gareth Price, Senior Research Fellow, Asia-Pacific Programme, Chatham House
