Identity and Identification in India Defining the Disadvantaged

Can a state empower its citizens by classifying them? Or do reservation policies reinforce the very categories they are meant to eradicate? Indian reservation policies on government jobs, legislative seats and university admissions for disadvantaged groups, like affirmative action policies elsewhere, are based on the premise that recognizing group distinctions in society is necessary to subvert these distinctions. Yet the official identification of eligible groups has unintended side-effects on identity politics. Bridging theories which emphasize the fluidity of identities and those which highlight the utility of group-based mobilizations and policies, this book exposes didactic enforcement of categorizations, while recognizing the social and political gains facilitated by group-based strategies.

Acknowledgements 1. Identity and Identification Part One: State Simplifications 2. Adjudicating Identities 3. Official Anthropology 4. Caste Certificates and Lists 5. Categorizing and Counting in the Census Part Two: Political Complications 6. 'Backward' Muslims and 'Scheduled Caste' Christians 7. Hindu Nationalism and Selective Inclusion 8. Class, Classification and Creamy Layers 9. Women's Reservations and Representations 10. Conclusions Notes Bibliography Appendix Index