Concept of Federalism and Decentralization of Administrative Powers: Reflection of ‘Manusmriti’ in Modern Governance of the Republic of India

The democratic federalism of India has earned wide appreciation across the globe as one of the best models of modern administration. But the root of this model is found much before India gained independence in the middle of the 20th century in an ancient holy book, ‘Manusanhita’, created several thousand years ago by a well-known intellectual sage Manu. Manu’s idea of federalism, decentralization of administrative power, rational tax administration, realistic foreign policy and his concept of law-making have similarity with the administrative frame work and long-cherished policy of India. Suresh Chandra Bandopadhyay in his translated, explanatory and edited version entitled ‘Manusanhita’ from Manu’s real text book has discussed how Manu’s concept had influenced the legislators of Indonesia, Philippines, Cambodia, Japan, Germany etc. in carving their administrative and legislative framework. In this paper, we’ll evaluate the impact of ‘Manusmriti’ or ‘Manusanhita’ on the governance and legislation of India and also assess the perceptions of Manu on the issues of casteism and women-independence.