Book Launch - Democracy’s Heartland Inside The Battle For Power in South Asia

Prof. John Doyle will be in conversation with Dr S.Y Quraishi, at the Pairc Room, first floor of U-Building from 1600-1700 on 18th November 2025. Dr Quraishi will also have copies of the book for purchase. 

South Asia is often seen as chaotic, volatile and even undemocratic. But former Chief Election Commissioner of India S.Y. Quraishi argues in Democracy’s Heartland that no other region has embraced the democratic experiment as fully, or as fiercely, as South Asia. From India’s electoral juggernaut to Pakistan’s power struggles, Bangladesh’s voter resilience to Nepal’s constitutional churn, Afghanistan’s downslide to Bhutan’s hesitant first steps, Quraishi offers a comparative tour of the subcontinent’s democracies, warts, wonders and all. Drawing on decades of first-hand experience, he combines sharp analysis with untold stories from the front lines of elections across the region.