Abstract:  This paper studies the impact of political quotas on development. I exploit an exogenous variation provided by the redistricting of the electoral constituencies in 2008: almost 20% of all Indian villages changed their quota status. I employ novel village-level data on nightlights, electrification, road (re)construction, and school enrolment. The findings are fourfold: (i) redistricting leads to more development in villages directly affected, (ii) villages that get the quotas for the first time experience a higher development as opposed to villages that lose the political quotas, (iii) share of the (SCs) minority in the village in addition to political quotas plays an instrumental role for the development (iv) there is evidence of intended ethnic favouritism. Furthermore, losing political quotas does not result in a lower level of development, implying a persistence of quota mandate.

Abstract:  Across contexts, many once-dominant parties have experienced a decline. These parties often seek a range of strategies to rebuild. This paper proposes that leader-driven campaigns can address core problems that declining parties face and help them improve their performance. These effects often require building on the momentum started by the campaign; otherwise, they end up short-lived. We study this in the context of India, the world's largest democracy, where Congress Party leader Rahul Gandhi engaged in a 150-day march (the Bharat Jodo Yatra) across the country after two consecutive losses in national elections. Our original survey of 3500 voters reveals that while the yatra boosted perceptions of Rahul Gandhi, it failed to enhance the party's overall image. We find that these perceptions translated to increased vote shares in Karnataka, the first state to conduct elections following the yatra. Polling stations near the yatra route recorded the highest increases in Congress vote share. Our interviews with party workers and voters identify three key channels through which leader-driven campaigns influence political outcomes: party-voter engagement, political discourse, and perceptions of party cohesion. However, we find that in the year after the yatra, voters only display sustained differences in their perception of Congress's internal unity. Overall, the paper demonstrates the promise and pitfalls of leader-driven campaigns as a strategy for party resurgence.

Abstract: The growing prominence of Hindu nationalism, known as "Hindutva," in India has garnered significant attention for its impact on politics and society, particularly its adverse effects on minority communities. However, the Hindu identity was not always a monolithic and political one. This study explores the potential role of a Hindu mythological show, "Ramayana," which aired on the solely available TV channel in India during 1987-88, in shaping the Hindutva identity primarily on the increasing salience of religious identity in people's political, social, and personal lives. We proxy for exposure to this show using location and television transmitters obtained from archival data and use signal propagation modelling based on irregular terrain to measure signal strength. Examining political and social manifestations of identity, we find that exposure to the TV show is associated with increased electoral success for right-wing Hindu nationalist parties, heightened tensions between Hindus and Muslims, and a decrease in the number of schools affiliated with the significant far-right Hindu nationalist organization. Our next steps involve investigating the impact on personal expressions of identity, such as child naming practices and dietary choices influenced by religious taboos.