The ideological foundation of a nation's moral economy reveals the ways in which it composes its self-image. It also sets the tone for how the nation negotiates other political values. This essay traces the ways in which the idea of unity has been formulated in the Indian political discourse and compares the various articulations of this concept. It looks at unity as a political ideal in the context of the deep diversity of postcolonial India and at this political ideal from the standpoint of equity.
