Gulshan Banas is a lecturer at the Institute of Political Science.

More information about Gulshan Banas

I am a Lecturer at the Institute of Political Science, Leiden University, and a PhD Candidate in Political Science at the University of Amsterdam (expected 2027).

My research examines the relationship between formal institutions and social inequalities, with particular focus on citizenship rights, identification systems, and state capacity in contexts of uneven development. My dissertation examines why millions of citizens in developing contexts remain incompletely documented despite living within functioning states, and combines large-scale surveys with original fieldwork in India.

Prior to my PhD, I spent over three years in international development and public policy research in India, working closely with provincial governments and the central Ministry of Urban Affairs. This practitioner background informs my approach to socially relevant research questions and methodological flexibility.