Rising Kulaks and Backward Classes in Bihar-Social Change in the Late 1970s

Rising Kulaks and Backward Classes in Bihar Social Change in the Late 1970s Harry W Blair The Janata period in Bihar has been plagued with instability and violence in the state's political life, its universities and its bureaucracy. In the minds of many observers, the disruption and its immediate cause, the Karpoori Thakur ministry's reservation policy, are indicative of a sea-change in the structure of Bihar's political economy: the 'Forwards' or 'twice-born' caste groups that had been dominant in Bihar since independence and before are being replaced by the 'Backward' castes as the dominant stratum in the state.