This collection of essays by writer, activist and senior professor Anand Teltumbde plumbs the depths of several pressing issues that mark independent India by turning a critical eye on the Constitution, rising Hindutva and political parties across the spectrum to interrogate the very idea of a republic. Unsparing in his arguments, Teltumbde is unafraid to go against the tide to point out the various nexuses between the state and economic forces that have historically contributed to – and continue to conspire to – keep Dalits in India in a state of oppression and marginalisation.