ABSTRACT
In this chapter, I examine economic and political histories of Gujjars from a regional perspective. While Gujjars have been landowners and a close ally to Charan Singh, they could not find their dues and political space in the western UP politics until 1990s. Locating Gujjars in the western UP region, I describe the ways in which regional politics is closely intertwined with state and national politics on the one hand and with the village on the other. I show how Gujjars (as well as other castes) use their identities in electoral practice and relate to local struggles/conflict over control of territory. It reveals Gujjars’ territorial claims that shape their political practice and imagination.
