Indian society is highly stratified, with many glaring inequalities among different social groups. The division of Indian society into various jatis, together with the practice of untouchability, and the geographic isolation of some tribal communities has meant that these communities have lagged behind others in terms of educational and occupational attainment, political participation and with regard to opportunities for social mobility. In order to overcome these disadvantages the Indian Constitution in 1950 (see Dirks, 2001; Galanter, 1984; McMillan 2005 among others) specified various preferential policies involving reservation of places in government institutions of education, employment and the legislature for the most deprived of these groups: the Scheduled Castes (SCs, ex-untouchables) and Scheduled Tribes (STs, isolated tribal communities.