ABSTRACT
During the early twentieth century, Indian politics had come to be shaped increasingly by new forms of political mobilization based upon caste and religious identity. Quite often, these politics were led by elites who claimed to represent larger, monolithic constituencies. As spokespersons for the Hindu Mahasabha, Muslim League, South Indian Liberation Federation, or the “Christian community” staked their claims upon government, they evoked a picture of an Indian society that was neatly divided into bounded groups who followed predictable lines of behavior. Stereotypes of a “tolerant” yet “threatened” Hindu majority, a separatist or “uncultured” Muslim minority, and masses of downtrodden and ignorant “Harijans” pervaded political discourse of this period.1
