Stabbed in the back? Mandated political representation and murders

Victoire Girard

NOVAFRICA Working Paper Series from Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Nova School of Business and Economics, NOVAFRICA

Abstract: This paper provides the first country-wide evidence that an affirmative action policy may induce a backlash. I exploit the timing of the implementation of caste-based electoral quotas across and within the states of India. The results show that the implementation of the electoral quotas coincides with an increase in the number of murders targeting members of the lower castes. The analysis of these administrative crime data is backed up by the complementary analysis of a nationally representative household survey. Households answers reveal an increase in inter-caste tensions and discrimination during the operation of caste quotas. The results are consistent with a backlash against electoral quotas (due to sabotage or retaliation), and inconsistent with other interpretations (such as empowerment).

Keywords: Sabotage; backlash; affirmative action; electoral quota; crime; caste (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 D74 J15 K42 O12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 45 pages
Date: 2020
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-law
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Journal Article: Stabbed in the back? Mandated political representation and murders (2021)
Working Paper: Stabbed in the back? Mandated political representation and murders (2021)
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