Housing the Republic: A Biography of the Indian Parliament By Sobhana K. Nair Bloomsbury India Pages: 256 Price: Rs. Institutions exist to preserve the space within which collective action remains possible and their architecture merely gives permanence to an ethical aspiration. In doing so, she rescues democratic history from sterile constitutionalism and restores its human drama. At a time when democratic institutions across the world face declining public trust, the book reminds us that criticism and affection are not opposites. Buildings may shelter institutions, institutions may safeguard constitutions, but only citizens sustain republics.