Conceptualizing the carceral state in contemporary India

Abstract

Abstract In this article, I explore the extraordinary measures within prison environments in contemporary India that intensify the carceral experience. I use these elements to develop a culturally distinctive theory of the carceral state in India. To analyse questions of community resilience and people’s voices in the face of extensive carceralization, I draw on the work of People’s Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR), a Delhi-based democratic rights organization, and analyse publicly available data on its activities and interventions over the past two decades.