The Birth of Indian Liberalism: Mama Parmanand's Letters to an Indian Raja

The first work of political theory published in modern India, Letters to an Indian Raja (1891) counseled Maharajas to foster liberal values and adopt constitutional government. Such reform would, it argued, make Indians freer and happier than they were under colonial rule, and thus allow the Native States to genuinely challenge the British. Accompanied by an extensive introductory essay by Rahul Sagar, a leading scholar of nineteenth century India, this carefully restored edition challenges...