UP Elections 2017: Counting My Caste

Sunil Kashyap, Rahul Rajbhar, Ramayan Patel and Rajeev Maurya are four young articulate, PhD students at Banaras Hindu University, deeply immersed in the politics of their community and their state. Each belongs to one of Uttar Pradesh's non-Yadav backward castes, which are less numerous in the state than the Yadavs but are now increasingly asserting their claim to a share of power in India's political process. The smaller OBC caste parties that they back are playing a crucial role in shaping electoral outcomes. On this week's India Matters - 'Counting My Caste' - the four BHU students take us through issues that drive these caste politics in their community.