Foreign Affairs · 1999 · 24 citations · 0 references
Social SciencesPolitical ScienceSociologyAsian HistoryAsian StudiesUrban PoliticsIndian StudiesIslamIslam In AsiaPolitical CultureSouth Asian HistorySouth Asian StudiesIndian Economic HistoryIndian Political Thought
In Srinagar's Lai Chowk, the most volatile bazaar in the most volatile city in Indias most volatile state, life is as normal as life here ever gets. Merchants and marketers haggle over the price of bruised apples, auto-rickshaws jockey with oxcarts for passage through the bustling alleyways, and soldiers gaze lazily through the gun-slits of their sandbagged bunker. There's a rumor that the separatist leader Shabbir Shah will hold a rally at noon, but nobody seems particularly interested. It's almost time for lunch.