Political intermediaries – who are crucial for citizens’ engagement with the state in urban areas – are backed by political parties. However, women are shown to be less embedded in these clientelist networks although they are active claim-makers. In this paper I explore the demand for and supply of women as intermediaries by expanding the scope of political intermediaries. I examine the role of women’s Self-Help Groups (SHGs) in the city of Hyderabad, India who are: a) non-partisan political intermediaries, b) represent institutionalized networks for women in a patriarchal society, and c) are presented by the state as an alternative to traditional informal networks. First, based on an original survey data I present a puzzle. I find that slum leaders are highly sought out by residents in the face of a public service problem. Further, most of my respondents are likely to recognize a man affiliated to a political party as the most important person/leader in the slum. However, a set of vignette questions show that respondents are more likely to choose a SHG leader as their ideal representative for the settlement over a party representative, especially when the party representative is a man. Using observations from shadowing SHGs, focus group discussions, and interviews with SHG leaders, I argue that political legitimacy of slum leaders is created top-down by party machinery. I also illuminate how women as claim-makers view slum leaders and women’s leadership. The systemic limitations to women’s political participation are discussed at a local level.
