India and the Global South: History, Challenges, and Future in World Politics

Edited by: Aastha Agarwal | B. Parkash

India & the Global South: History, Challenges & Future in World Politics advances a clear and sustained argument: the Global South is no longer situated on the margins of world politics. It refuses to be defined by historical, post-colonial dependency but seeks to alter geopolitical reality by demanding multilateral reform and agency to partake in global agenda setting for both traditional and non traditional security issues.

Rather than treating the Global South as a unified political bloc, the book foregrounds differentiated capacities, strategic choices, and competing visions of order that shape Southern engagement in an increasingly fragmented international system. It pivots around India–Bharat not as a slogan but as a civilizational and strategic actor. It examines how leadership is claimed, performed, and resisted within Southern coalitions. India’s role is assessed through concrete practices: agenda-setting platforms such as the G20 and the Voice of the Global South, coalition diplomacy, development partnerships, and norm entrepreneurship in multilateral reform debates.

Structured as a cumulative argument, the chapters move from conceptual foundations and historical evolution to material and ideational sources of Southern power, before confronting internal asymmetries, rival external influences, and limits of collective action. The final section extends this analysis to emerging domains—digital governance, artificial intelligence, gender, and youth—demonstrating how new arenas of power will shape the future autonomy of the Global South.

Rigorously reviewed and tightly integrated, the volume offers a decisive intervention for scholars and policymakers seeking to understand not whether the Global South matters, but how it is actively reordering global politics.

Edited by: Aastha Agarwal | B. Parkash

Aastha Agarwal is serving as an Assistant Professor at University of Delhi. Her doctoral research is on India’s Cultural Diplomacy where she explores key aspects of India’s Soft Power.

B Parkash is the Program Coordinator (Department of Political Science), Baba Mastnath University Rohtak. He is a seasoned professor with over 38 years of experience in research and academia.

Contents

Preface

Foreword

Tables and Figure

Editors and Contributors

1. What is the Global South? Concepts, Definitions, and Contested Meanings
Arvind Yadav and Chiman Lal

2. The Diplomatic History of the Global South: From NAM to the G20
Gaurav Sen

3. India and China in the Global South: Comparative Trajectories and Leadership Claims
Nidhi Taneja

4. The Global South in IR Theory: Postcolonial, Decolonial, and Critical Perspectives
Manish Yadav and Ashok Attri

5. Strategic and Economic Power of the Global South
Vineet Singh Kagtan

6. Mapping the Soft Power of the Global South: Assets, Aspirations, and Asymmetries
Aastha Agarwal

7. South–South Cooperation: Institutions, Development Models, and Partnerships
Vivek Sangwan

8. Diaspora and People-to-People Linkages: Comparative Experiences from the Global South
Sonika

9. From Conflict to Human Security: India’s Role in Addressing Non-Traditional Threats in the Global South
Manish Kumar Yadav and Suraj Yadav

10. External Pressures and Strategic Agency in the Global South
Somvir Yadav and Manish Yadav

11. Internal Challenges of the Global South
Anna Nath Ganguly and Utkarsh Majumdar

12. Fragmented Solidarities: China, India, and the Contest for Influence in the Global South
Satyam Dubey

13. AI and Technology Futures: Opportunities and Risks for the Global South
Babita Devi

14. Inclusive Pathways in Literature: Arundhati Roy on Gender and Youth in the Global South
Neha Kumari and Meenal Talus

15. The Global South in a Multipolar Era: Multilateral Reform, Strategic Autonomy, and Future Pathways
B. Parkash and Aastha Agarwal

Index