Our Republic was established on this day in 1950. So, it is a good day to re-evaluate the nature of the Indian state. One approach would be to compare it to what the framers of the Constitution had envisioned. Another, to contrast it with developments in other countries. But what if we compared it to the thoughts of Kautilya, one of the greatest political thinkers India has ever produced?

Kautilya, also called Chanakya, is often called India’s Machiavelli. But this colonial-era epithet is grossly unfair. For all his fame, Niccolò Machiavelli was a small-time political adviser in Florence who was ousted by his rivals. In contrast, Kautilya was the co-founder of one of the largest empires of the ancient world..................Read more

Source: The Economic Times