Peter B. Andersen is Associate Professor at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Rubya Mehdi is Senior Researcher at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark and has been Visiting Professor at Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan.Amit Prakash is Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India.

‘Coming at a critical time when civil society in South Asia is facing multi-faceted challenges, this anthology is useful in many respects. While tracing the past milestones and analyzing the present malaise, this brilliantly conceived and executed volume provides insights into what possibly could be done to keep the role of civil society intact and ensure its relevance in future.’Syed Jaffar Ahmed, Institute of Historical and Social Research, Karachi, Pakistan‘As the world in general and South Asia in particular descend into deeper political and social turmoil, questions pertaining to the complexity, the real and perceived roles, and the multiple dimensions of what has come to be known as Civil Society take on heightened significance. This book is a very timely and perceptive study of this vibrant phenomenon as it has come to distinctively evolve in South Asia. From its western philosophical roots and constructs as well as its colonial antecedents, the authors astutely analyze the fascinating development of Civil Society into something organic, multifarious, contested, persecuted, defiant and emancipatory.’Osama Siddique, Author of Pakistan’s Experience with Formal Law: An Alien Justice (2013)‘This edited volume is an example of uniformly excellent scholarship, adopts a varied set of approaches to dissect the nature and impact of civil society in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. Its thorough coverage of various types of civil society by well-established experts is a must-read for scholars and students with an interest in civil society studies in South Asia.’Ashok Swain, Professor of Peace and Conflict Research, Uppsala University, Sweden

• 1. Dissemination of Civil Society in South Asia: Introductory Considerations Part I: Multifaceted and Local Civil Societies in Pakistan, India and Bangladesh 2. Building Civil Society in Colonial India during the Long Nineteenth Century 3. Civil Society in India: What Is It and Where Is It Going? 4. Clearing Misconceptions about Civil Society in Pakistan 5. Civil Society, Human Rights and Political Antagonism in Bangladesh Part II: Civil Society’s Multiple Hues and Roles 6. Thieves and Khoji’s in a Non-State, Collectivist System of Justice under Transformation: An Example from a Village of Southern Punjab, Pakistan 7. Dilemmas Facing Civil Society Institutions in Pakistan: A Case for Organized Labour 8. Bureaucratic Empowerment as a Tool for Reproduction of Inequalities 9. Entertaining the Possibility of Society’s Radical Transformation: A Personal View of Women Front (1974–1976) 10. The Women’s Action Forum, Pakistan: Ideology and Functioning 11. Madrasas and Religious Maslaks as a Case of Skewed Civil Society in Pakistan 12. Striving for Space in Pakistan under COVID-19 Part III: Civil Mobilization among Ethnic and Linguistic Minorities 13. The Organization of the Writers’ Community as a Linguistic Minority: The Santal Tribe 14. Imagining Santal Rationality as Empowerment 15. Santals: Language, Lyricism, Emotions and Identity

Peter B. Andersen is Associate Professor at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Rubya Mehdi is Senior Researcher at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark and has been Visiting Professor at Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan.Amit Prakash is Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India.

‘Coming at a critical time when civil society in South Asia is facing multi-faceted challenges, this anthology is useful in many respects. While tracing the past milestones and analyzing the present malaise, this brilliantly conceived and executed volume provides insights into what possibly could be done to keep the role of civil society intact and ensure its relevance in future.’Syed Jaffar Ahmed, Institute of Historical and Social Research, Karachi, Pakistan‘As the world in general and South Asia in particular descend into deeper political and social turmoil, questions pertaining to the complexity, the real and perceived roles, and the multiple dimensions of what has come to be known as Civil Society take on heightened significance. This book is a very timely and perceptive study of this vibrant phenomenon as it has come to distinctively evolve in South Asia. From its western philosophical roots and constructs as well as its colonial antecedents, the authors astutely analyze the fascinating development of Civil Society into something organic, multifarious, contested, persecuted, defiant and emancipatory.’Osama Siddique, Author of Pakistan’s Experience with Formal Law: An Alien Justice (2013)‘This edited volume is an example of uniformly excellent scholarship, adopts a varied set of approaches to dissect the nature and impact of civil society in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. Its thorough coverage of various types of civil society by well-established experts is a must-read for scholars and students with an interest in civil society studies in South Asia.’Ashok Swain, Professor of Peace and Conflict Research, Uppsala University, Sweden

• 1. Dissemination of Civil Society in South Asia: Introductory Considerations Part I: Multifaceted and Local Civil Societies in Pakistan, India and Bangladesh 2. Building Civil Society in Colonial India during the Long Nineteenth Century 3. Civil Society in India: What Is It and Where Is It Going? 4. Clearing Misconceptions about Civil Society in Pakistan 5. Civil Society, Human Rights and Political Antagonism in Bangladesh Part II: Civil Society’s Multiple Hues and Roles 6. Thieves and Khoji’s in a Non-State, Collectivist System of Justice under Transformation: An Example from a Village of Southern Punjab, Pakistan 7. Dilemmas Facing Civil Society Institutions in Pakistan: A Case for Organized Labour 8. Bureaucratic Empowerment as a Tool for Reproduction of Inequalities 9. Entertaining the Possibility of Society’s Radical Transformation: A Personal View of Women Front (1974–1976) 10. The Women’s Action Forum, Pakistan: Ideology and Functioning 11. Madrasas and Religious Maslaks as a Case of Skewed Civil Society in Pakistan 12. Striving for Space in Pakistan under COVID-19 Part III: Civil Mobilization among Ethnic and Linguistic Minorities 13. The Organization of the Writers’ Community as a Linguistic Minority: The Santal Tribe 14. Imagining Santal Rationality as Empowerment 15. Santals: Language, Lyricism, Emotions and Identity

Peter B. Andersen is Associate Professor at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Rubya Mehdi is Senior Researcher at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark and has been Visiting Professor at Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan.Amit Prakash is Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India.

‘Coming at a critical time when civil society in South Asia is facing multi-faceted challenges, this anthology is useful in many respects. While tracing the past milestones and analyzing the present malaise, this brilliantly conceived and executed volume provides insights into what possibly could be done to keep the role of civil society intact and ensure its relevance in future.’Syed Jaffar Ahmed, Institute of Historical and Social Research, Karachi, Pakistan‘As the world in general and South Asia in particular descend into deeper political and social turmoil, questions pertaining to the complexity, the real and perceived roles, and the multiple dimensions of what has come to be known as Civil Society take on heightened significance. This book is a very timely and perceptive study of this vibrant phenomenon as it has come to distinctively evolve in South Asia. From its western philosophical roots and constructs as well as its colonial antecedents, the authors astutely analyze the fascinating development of Civil Society into something organic, multifarious, contested, persecuted, defiant and emancipatory.’Osama Siddique, Author of Pakistan’s Experience with Formal Law: An Alien Justice (2013)‘This edited volume is an example of uniformly excellent scholarship, adopts a varied set of approaches to dissect the nature and impact of civil society in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. Its thorough coverage of various types of civil society by well-established experts is a must-read for scholars and students with an interest in civil society studies in South Asia.’Ashok Swain, Professor of Peace and Conflict Research, Uppsala University, Sweden

• 1. Dissemination of Civil Society in South Asia: Introductory Considerations Part I: Multifaceted and Local Civil Societies in Pakistan, India and Bangladesh 2. Building Civil Society in Colonial India during the Long Nineteenth Century 3. Civil Society in India: What Is It and Where Is It Going? 4. Clearing Misconceptions about Civil Society in Pakistan 5. Civil Society, Human Rights and Political Antagonism in Bangladesh Part II: Civil Society’s Multiple Hues and Roles 6. Thieves and Khoji’s in a Non-State, Collectivist System of Justice under Transformation: An Example from a Village of Southern Punjab, Pakistan 7. Dilemmas Facing Civil Society Institutions in Pakistan: A Case for Organized Labour 8. Bureaucratic Empowerment as a Tool for Reproduction of Inequalities 9. Entertaining the Possibility of Society’s Radical Transformation: A Personal View of Women Front (1974–1976) 10. The Women’s Action Forum, Pakistan: Ideology and Functioning 11. Madrasas and Religious Maslaks as a Case of Skewed Civil Society in Pakistan 12. Striving for Space in Pakistan under COVID-19 Part III: Civil Mobilization among Ethnic and Linguistic Minorities 13. The Organization of the Writers’ Community as a Linguistic Minority: The Santal Tribe 14. Imagining Santal Rationality as Empowerment 15. Santals: Language, Lyricism, Emotions and Identity