About
I am currently working as Assistant Professor (Research)-cum-Director of the Gender Resource Centre at Chanakya National Law University (CNLU), Patna. I hold Ph.D. in Sociology from the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur and earned a Master of Arts degree from Jawaharlal Nehru University. Before joining CNLU, Patna, I was a Senior Fellow at the Humanities Centre for Advanced Studies at Leipzig University, Germany. My field of specialization is sociology of law, with scholarly interests in inheritance, gender, religion, ageing and policing.
Qualification
My academic journey began with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Banasthali University in Rajasthan, where I ranked first in merit and was awarded a Gold Medal. In 2011, I earned a Certificate in French from Banasthali University.
I completed Master of Arts in Politics with a specialization in International Relations at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in New Delhi. I owe my spirit of inquiry and humanism to my Masters education at JNU. Attending a reputed and heavily subsidized educational institute offered me the chance to interact with students from diverse social, cultural, and economic backgrounds. If I could sum up my biggest takeaway from JNU, it would be: ‘The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it’ (Karl Marx, 1845).
I completed Ph.D. in Sociology from Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (India), where I worked under the supervision of Prof. Anindita Chakrabarti and Prof. Anuj Bhuwania.
Teaching / Research Experience
My training as a sociologist at IIT Kanpur has taught me to look beyond the seemingly obvious and to investigate the social forces that shape the everyday reality. Eager to learn about the social and legal linkages on the subject of women’s rights, I decided to work as an intern at Majlis Legal Centre, a non-governmental organization. Witnessing the encounters between the litigants and stakeholders within and outside the judiciary allowed me to think beyond the confines of academic theories and written law. Further, at Majlis, I got the opportunity to work under the mentorship of its founder, Ms. Flavia Agnes, an eminent legal scholar and political rights activist. I also participated in a ‘Certificate Program’ organized by the ILS Law College (Pune) in 2018, where I gained insights into the interdisciplinary approach to learning law.
My doctoral thesis entitled ‘Between Family and State: A Socio-legal Ethnography of Inheritance and Maintenance Disputes in the District Court of Ayodhya (India)’ lies in the area of ‘Sociology of Law’. Post my thesis defense, I worked as Senior Fellow at the Humanities Centre for Advanced Studies, Leipzig University (Germany) on the ‘Multiple Secularities – Beyond the West, Beyond Modernities’ project.
Here’s a brief overview of her doctoral research. Her research is driven by her curiosity on the subject of inheritance. Her doctoral thesis offers a socio-legal perspective on family and inheritance in the Indian context. Drawing from an analysis of inheritance and maintenance disputes, and narratives of legal actors in the district court of Ayodhya, interviews conducted in the city’s old age homes, and government reports, the thesis examines how the theoretical assumptions of legal reforms on inheritance fare in practice. In doing so, it considers two key themes: (a) gender and property rights and (b) elderly care and inheritance.
My experiences at Banasthali University, JNU and IIT Kanpur have made me realize that an empirical and scientific understanding of society is useful in solving critical social issues, which is why I decided to pursue a career in research and teaching.
At CNLU, Patna, I have taught undergraduate students and doctoral scholars. My courses include Sociology of Law (for B.A., LL.B. (H) students), General Principles of Sociology (for B.A., LL.B. (H) students), Family Law-I (for both B.A., LL.B. (H) and B.B.A., LL.B. (H) students) and Empirical Research (for new Ph.D. recruits). I have also been actively engaged in developing and delivering coursework for new Ph.D. recruits at CNLU. Currently, I am working on a research project titled ‘On Gender-Responsive Policing: A Socio-Legal Study of Women Police Personnel’s Lived Experiences in Bihar’ (funded by the United Nations Population Fund).
Area of Interest
Sociology of law, law-gender-society intersections, sociology of inheritance, sociology of ageing, law and religion and policing
Publications
Chakrabarti, Anindita, Ayushi Dube, and Shriram Venkatraman. “God’s Wealth, Legal Frames, and the Question of Material and Immaterial Heritage: The Case of Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Kerala, India.” Cultural Studies 38, no. 5 (2024): 794-814.https://doi.org/10.1080/09502386.2024.2363180
Dube, Ayushi. 2022. Review of Identifying and Regulating Religion in India: Law, History and the Place of Worship, by Geetanjali Srikantan. South Asia Research 42, no. 3: 463-465. https://doi.org/10.1177/02627280221115691
Dube Ayushi, Madhuparna Nayak, and Anindita Chakrabarti. “Law, Religion and Economy: The Case of Hindu Undivided Family (HUF) in Modern Indian Family Business Succession.” South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies. (Manuscript under review)
Conference / Seminar / Workshop
In August 2025, I presented a paper titled “Between Family and State: Lessons on Elderly Care, Inheritance, and the Generational Contract in the Indian Context” (co-authored paper with Prof. Anindita Chakrabarti) at the International Workshop on ‘Inheritance, Economy and Law: A Sociological Inquiry’ at the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India, supported by the Max Weber Forum for South Asian Studies in Delhi. Before that, in November 2024, I presented a co-authored paper with Prof. Anindita Chakrabarti on “Between Family and State: Elderly Care, Inheritance, and the Generational Contract in the Indian Context” at the Symposium on Life Course and Everyday Life of Older People Living in Poverty, held at the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia. Earlier, in March 2024, I delivered two paper presentations titled “Sociological Study of Law in the Indian Context: Mapping the Field” (co-authored paper with Prof. Anindita Chakrabarti) and “Cruelty in Conjugal Sphere: Marriage, Family, and Gender in the Indian Context” (co-authored paper with Prof. Munmun Jha) at the Symposium on Law and Social Change: Mapping Transformations and Sites of Intersection at IIT Kanpur.
In 2023, I presented two papers: one, “Elderly Caregiving, Family, and Inheritance: Narratives from the District Court of Ayodhya (India)”, virtually at the XX ISA World Congress of Sociology in Melbourne in June 2023, and the other, “Sociological Study of Inheritance using Multi-sited Ethnography: Methodological Reflections”, at the 3rd International and Interdisciplinary Conference on Spatial Methods for Urban Sustainability and the 3rd RC33 Regional Conference Asia: India at IIT Roorkee in February 2023.
In September 2022, I delivered a paper presentation in was on “Gender, Family, and Property Rights: Narratives from the District Court of Ayodhya (India)” at the 6th Conference of the International Consortium for Law and Religion Studies in Córdoba, Spain.
In December 2021, I presented alongside Prof. Anindita Chakrabarti on “Religious Freedom, Human Rights, and Secular Governance in India: A Socio-legal Study of Jain Santhara” at the Flashpoints Conference: Law, Human Rights, and Religion at Nottingham Law School, England.
In January 2020, I contributed a paper on “Revisiting Marc Galanter’s Legal Sociology” during Research Scholars’ Day at IIT Kanpur. Before that, in February 2012, I presented “Mechanisms of Learning” at the “Understanding Human Behavior” workshop at Banasthali University.
Capacity Building Training Programmes
In February 2023, I attended the Advanced Methods course on “Grounded Theory and Situational Analysis” taught by Prof. Jörg Strübing (Universität Tübingen, Germany) at the SMUS Conference India held at IIT Roorkee. In March 2020, I organized and participated in an “Academic Writing” workshop at IIT Kanpur.
From May to June 2019, I completed a research internship at Majlis Legal Centre (Mumbai, India), a non-governmental organization that provides legal representation to women in cases of domestic violence and sexual abuse, conducts legal rights training, and campaigns for policy-level interventions. I had a rewarding experience working under the mentorship of Ms. Flavia Agnes, an eminent legal scholar, political rights activist and founder of Majlis.
In November 2018, I participated in a “Legal Rights of Women” workshop at IIT Kanpur. From September to October 2018, I completed the Certificate Program on “Vidhishilpakar – What? How? And Why? Of Learning the Law” at the Indian Law Society’s Law College, Pune, India.
Honours / Awards / Membership
In 2015, I was honoured with the Bhamashah Award for achieving the highest percentage in Bachelor of Arts among all universities in the state of Rajasthan. That same year, I qualified for the National Eligibility Test in Political Science, marking a significant milestone in my academic career. I was awarded the K C Mahindra Honour Scholarship, which recognized my success in the Mahindra Search for Talent Scholarship for three consecutive years, from 2011 to 2013.
I have been a Life Member of the Indian Sociological Society (ISS) since 2024.
Visiting Faculty / Guest Lectures / Keynote Address
On March 30, 2025, I delivered an invited talk on “Role of Legal Training in Strengthening Community-based Intervention to Combat Gender-based Violence” at a state-level workshop on ‘Jeevika Didi Adhikar Kendras,’ also known as Gender Resource Centres, co-organized by the Centre for Catalysing Change and JEEVIKA, under the Rural Development Department of the Government of Bihar.
Other Accomplishments
Editorial Leadership: I am a member of the Journal and Publications Committee on January 22, 2025, and have been contributing as Managing Editor of CNLU Law Journal.
Community Engagement and Funding Initiatives: Dr. Fr. Peter Ladis F. and I (as Programme Co-convenor) secured funding of Rs. 2,62,500 from the Senior Citizen Division, National Institute of Social Defence, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, Government of India, on March 19, 2025. The programmes were successfully executed, enhancing legal awareness and community outreach.
Administrative Leadership
As a core team member, I contributed to the organization of the Symposium on ‘Law and Social Change: Mapping Transformations and Sites of Intersection at Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India, in March 2024.
Key Efforts as Director, Gender Resource Centre (CNLU-GRC), Chanakya National Law University, Patna
Capacity-building Efforts
Initiatives include organization of a one-day inaugural event for CNLU-GRC, convening around 40 stakeholders from government, CSOs and academia to outline the Centre’s statewide objectives in addressing gender-based violence (GBV); onboarding of 33 faculty members and external experts into a dedicated resource pool to support ongoing capacity-building on GBV, gender laws and related Acts; organization of capacity-building workshops for 133 participants on the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, in partnership with the Women and Child Development Corporation (WCDC), Bihar and organization of training for 128 administrators, counsellors, and case workers from One Stop Centres across Bihar on GBV and psycho-social counselling to bolster frontline survivor support.
Action-Based Research
Key highlights include the successful completion of a pilot socio-legal study on gender-responsive policing in Bihar by December 2025 and convening consultative meetings on witchcraft-based persecution and missing children in Bihar.
Academic Initiatives and Student Engagement
Efforts include developing and teaching a two-credit elective course, “Constructions of Gender and Sexuality in Indian Modernity”, for B.A. LL.B. (Hons.) and B.B.A. LL.B. (Hons.) students (2025-26), incorporating fieldwork, guest lectures and orientation sessions (as part of the course, students conducted fieldwork at One Stop Centres, women-friendly panchayats and Local Committee on the implementation of the POSH Act); initiating the development of a resource library by acquiring key texts on gender, law and public policy (in Hindi and English) to support teaching and research and hosting invited lectures by Ms. May-Elin Stener (Ambassador of Norway to India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Bhutan), Ms. Shabnam Hashmi and Ms. Rita Manchanda.
Dissemination and Advocacy
Initiatives include organizing a state-level Validation Workshop on Interventions to Address Child Marriage and Adolescent Pregnancy in Bihar with UNFPA, attracting 130 attendees and organization of a state-level Consultancy on 25 years of the Bihar Witchcraft Prevention Act (1999) in collaboration with Nirantar Trust, bringing together community leaders, survivors, and experts.
Community Outreach and Awareness
Efforts include leading a “Healthy Masculinity and Responsible Online Behaviour” campaign (November 26-December 10, 2025) in collaboration with the Department of Education, Sheikhpura and PCI youth groups, featuring poster competitions and nukkad natak on digital violence for 55 participants.
