Every other English colony successful?
Thats news to me. The only ex-colonies I see successful are the ones inhabited by Europeans. Among the native-dominant colonies, India qualifies as a rare success.
Yup, the caste thingy is a big issue in India. And the political system perpetuates it. A first-past-the-post system 9as in Westminister) means that you could win with 20% of the vote with 10 candidates in the fray. So, its muh easier to trade in caste coalitions than to do the hardwork of reform and development.
Just my $0.02.
Hong Kong and Singapore are both considered developed by many, and they obviously are not majority European descended. Malaysia and South Africa are part of a second tier, neither developed but still developing at a rapid clip. Third tier would be countries such as Uganda and Ghana, poor countries, but relatively stable ones. Also to be taken into consideration is how much of the success is directly traceable to British rule.