| This dissertation uses a series of events at a Hindu temple in Kerala to explore contrasting models of sovereignty in contemporary India. Via interactions between the (state-run) Ayyappan temple at Sabarimala, the High Court of Kerala, and various regulatory bodies responsible for the temple's administration, I show that temple management is premised upon an understanding of sovereignty as being both wholly vested in citizens and as shared between citizens and the state. Three case studies involving events which occurred between 2006-2011 focus on issues pertaining to gender equality, freedom of belief, and administrative authority. Furthermore, I demonstrate that in its position as overseer of Sabarimala, the High Court strives to ensure that neither vision of sovereignty assumes a position of dominance. I argue that this dynamic imbalance between divided and undivided sovereignty is deeply embedded within a specifically Indian response to liberal democratic governance, and is generated by a productive tension within the Constitution itself. |
