Mandali (caste)

The Mandali are a Muslim Rajput community found in the state of Gujarat in India.^[1]

History and origin

The Mandali claim to have migrated from the city of Multan in what is now Pakistan in the 16th Century and settled at Mandal, a small town of Viramgam taluka of Ahmadabad District. Thus, the community is named after its place of residence. A further migration took place in the 19th Century, when a few members of the community moved to Surat.^[1]

Present circumstances

The Mandali community is now mainly distributed in the town of Viramgam, Bapunagar and Kalupur localities of Ahmedabad and Surendra Nagar district. They are further divided into a number of clans, the main ones being the Kachhote, Salar, Patadia, Waria, Barogia, Adi and Panghed. All these clans are of equal status, and inter marry. The Mandali are a community of marginal landowners, although significant numbers are now found in the cities of Ahmedabad and Surat. Like other Gujarati Muslims, they have a caste association known as the Mandali Muslim Jamaat. The community are Sunni and many are members of the reformist Tableeghi Jamat organization.^[1]

See also

• Molesalam Rajputs
• Muslim Nayaks

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Lal, R.B; Padmanabham, P.B.S.V; Krishnan, G et al., eds. People of India: Gujarat. part two. XXI. pp. 846–850.