When Legal Procedures are Informally Copy-Pasted: Divorce Matters in India
Yugank Goyal
February 12, 2024
In the latest issue of India in Transition, Yugank Goyal (FLAME University) examines informal divorce practices in India to show how people often bypass laws by mimicking formal procedures in their informal settings.
CASI Welcomes Spring 2024 Visiting Scholar, Ranjini Basu
Ranjini Basu (Garware Post-Doctoral Fellow, UPIASI and CASI 2023-24 Non-Resident Visiting Scholar) is in residence at CASI throughout February as a Spring 2024 Visiting Scholar. Her research interests include agrarian studies, peasant movements, rural transformations, and food governance. As part of her fellowship, she studies contemporary agrarian politics and ecological concerns in rural North India.
CASI in the News
Sudev Sheth Gr’18, Senior Lecturer of International Studies at the Lauder Institute (Wharton and SAS) and the Department of History, and CASI Summer 2014 Travel Research Funds Graduate Student Awardee, was interviewed about his new book Bankrolling Empire: Family Fortunes and Political Transformation in Mughal India (CUP 2024) in the February 6, 2024 issue of Penn Today. An excerpt from Sheth’s book was published in the February 2, 2024 issue of Scroll.in.
Sheth’s book traces how a family of diamond dealers deployed wealth to play off political leaders and survive the collapse of the Mughal Empire. The story highlights the unique role played by Jain and Hindu bankers in the daily affairs of Islamic, Hindu, and early colonial forms of Indian government. Spanning several political dynasties and still thriving today as a billion-dollar family firm in its fourteenth generation, the entrepreneurs featured in this book help us see Indian state power and social change through fresh eyes. The book is based on Sheth's Penn doctoral dissertation supported by some of the field research conducted in India with his CASI Summer 2014 award for his project, People, Princes, and Paramountcy in India: A social history of statecraft and governance in Baroda, 1721-1949. The Lauder Institute, the South Asia Studies Center, and CASI will host Sheth in Fall 2024 for a book talk.
CASI Student Programs
Thanks to all Penn students who applied for Summer Internships opportunities! Applications are now closed.
Read all about the CASI 2023 Summer Interns and Summer Research Grant recipients' experiences on the CASI Student Programs Blog!
Questions about CASI Student Programs?
Please contact Juni Bahuguna (Assistant Director, Student & Visitor Programs) at junib@sas.upenn.edu
Upcoming Events
2023-24 CASI Seminar Series
February 15, 2024, 12 noon (In-Person) at CASI
CASI / South Asia Center Seminar with Ranjini Basu (UPIASI; CASI Spring 2024 Visiting Scholar)
February 22, 2024, 12 noon (In-Person) at CASI
"United States of India: An Alternate Genealogy of Indian Federalism"
CASI / South Asia Center / Dept. of South Asia Studies / Dept. of History Seminar with Sarath Pillai (CASI)
CASI 2023 Data Seminar Series Videos Available
View the full videos of all 12 seminars in the CASI 2023 Data Seminar Series—hosted by Rukmini S. (Independent Data Journalist; CASI Fall 2022 Visiting Fellow).
CASI 2024-25 Postdoctoral Research & Climate Fellowship Opportunities
CASI is currently reviewing applications for Postdoctoral Fellowship Opportunities for 2024-25 and is no longer accepting new applications. Thanks to all who applied!
CASI 2022-23 Annual Report
CASI's 2022-23 Annual Report is available! View our highlights from the past year and learn about some of our plans for the coming year.
Campus Location
CASI's office is located close to the heart of Penn's campus at the Ronald O. Perelman Center for Political Science & Economics at 133 South 36th Street (Suite 230) Philadelphia, PA 19104-6215.
Please note: CASI is operating on a hybrid schedule.
