Citation

Roychowdhury P. Am. J. Sociol. 2021; 126(4): 852-888.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, University of Chicago Press)

DOI

10.1086/713132

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Gender and legal scholars argue that law enforcement personnel govern gendered violence by selectively protecting "good victims" and imposing social control. This article shows why these theories are not universally applicable. Using 26 months of participant observation and interview data with law enforcement personnel in the state of West Bengal, India, this article identifies an alternate set of governmental practices termed incorporation. Law enforcement personnel incorporated women by reassigning casework and encouraging extralegal repossessions and punishment. This governmental model rewarded women with organizational connections, not women who were "good victims." And instead of expanding state control, it delegated authority to civilians. These findings underscore how low enforcement capacity and political mobilization influence the way law enforcement governs gendered violence in a postcolonial, developing context.