Book review: democratic dynasties: state, party and family in contemporary Indian politics edited by Kanchan Chandra

Democratic Dynasties: State, Party and Family in Contemporary Indian Politics is a new edited volume from Kanchan Chandra which draws on original data from India to propose a rethinking of the view that dynastic politics is a violation of democracy, showing that it can also reinforce some aspects of democracy while hindering others. Asad Abbasi finds the book deceptively difficult and does not recommend it for casual readers. However, he writes that it does have a straightforward method of analysis which produces interesting conclusions.