ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explores the broad theme, drawing primarily upon the experience of rural netas — drawn from the ranks of local leaders and elected representatives — who occupy the key position of intermediaries between the state and rural society. It aims to examine the proposition that protest action and movements, constituting a grey area of Indian politics, are an important source of the legitimation of the authority of the state. The book suggests that India’s local elites are a crucial hinge group whose ability to incorporate newly emerging social forces into the political arena and to ease out old style notables is the critical determinant of the stability, legitimacy and expansion of the state. It focuses on the merging of two major traditions of research in social and economic change.
