Rise of the Plebeians?: The Changing Face of the Indian Legislative Assemblies [Hardcover]

For decades, India has been a conservative democracy governed by the upper caste notables coming from the urban bourgeoisie, the landowning aristocracy and the intelligentsia. The democratisation of the worlds largest democracy started with the rise of peasants parties and the politicisation of the lower castes who voted their own representatives to power as soon as they emancipated themselves from the elites domination. In Indian state politics, caste plays a major role and this book successfully studies how this caste-based social diversity gets translated into politics.

This is the first comprehensive study of the sociological profile of Indian political personnel at the state level. It examines the individual trajectory of 16 states, from the 1950s to 2000s, according to one dominant parameterthe evolution of the caste background of their elected representatives known as Members of the Legislative Assembly, or MLAs. The study also takes into account other variables like occupation, gender, age and education.

 

 

Foreword Yogendra Yadav.  Introduction Christophe Jaffrelot  Part 1: North India towards Social Engineering  1. The Political Elite in Uttar Pradesh Jasmine Z?rinini-Brotel  2. Bihar: The New Stronghold of Plebeian Politics Cyril Robin  3. The Uneven Rise of the Lower Castes in Madhya Pradesh Politics Christophe Jaffrelot  4. From the Upper Castes to the Dominant Caste Politics in Rajasthan: A Conservative Pattern of Political Evolution Christophe Jaffrelot  5. Gujarat: When Patels Resist the Kshatriyas Ghanshyam Shah and Kiran Desai  Part 2: Thel³Z