NEW DELHI: The Political Science Society successfully organised the Political Science Conclave 2026 on March 12-13, 2026, at the India International Centre, New Delhi, bringing together leading scholars, policymakers and practitioners to deliberate on the evolving questions shaping political thought and public life in contemporary India.
The Conclave was inaugurated by Dr Sukanta Majumdar, Union Minister of State for Education and Development of North Eastern Region, who addressed the gathering as the Chief Guest. The inaugural session also featured Ram Madhav, President of India Foundation, as the Chief Speaker, along with Dr Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, former President of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, and Dr Sanjeev Chopra, former Director of the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, who joined as Special Guests. The session was chaired by eminent political scientist Prof. MP Singh, former Professor and Head of the Department of Political Science at the University of Delhi.
Over the two days, the Conclave hosted a series of plenary sessions and thematic discussions featuring distinguished speakers from academia, policy institutions, media and civil society. Prominent participants included Dr MR Madhavan (PRS Legislative Research), Dr Niranjan Sahoo (Observer Research Foundation), noted author and public intellectual Gurucharan Das, and economist Prof. Ashwani Mahajan. The sessions also featured leading academics such as Prof. Ashok Acharya (University of Delhi), Prof. Pampa Mukherjee and Prof. Ashutosh Kumar, along with representatives from the Hanns Seidel Foundation and noted educator Smt. Shubhra Ranjan from the Institute for Humanities. Several academic leaders and vice chancellors from across the country participated in the deliberations.
The Conclave concluded with a Valedictory Session attended by Sh. Ram Bahadur Rai, President of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, KN Shrivastava, Director of the India International Centre, RN Behera, Member of Parliament from Jajpur, and Prof. Shri Prakash Singh, Vice Chancellor of Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University.
In addition to the plenary sessions, the Conclave featured special track events and workshops organised in collaboration with India Foundation, Rishihood University, Miranda House(University of Delhi), Hindu College (University of Delhi), Ground Zero Consulting and Manthan Learning, which explored themes such as policy innovation, leadership and institutional development.
The academic segment of the Conclave saw over 150 research papers presented across 12 parallel sessions. Overall, the event brought together over 300 participants and more than 50 speakers, representing academia, the non-profit sector, government institutions and the media.
The Conclave was convened by Sr. Prof. Dr Rekha Saxena, Head of the Department of Political Science, University of Delhi, with Dr Swadesh Singh, Assistant Professor, University of Delhi, serving as Co-Convenor.
