The Jadeja are an community originating in India who claim to be descended from the mythological Krishna and thus to belong to the Yaduvanshi Rajputs, who in turn form a part of the Chandravanshi (Lunar Dynasty).
A Jadeja dynasty ruled the princely state of Kutch between 1540 and 1948, at which time India became a republic. This state had been formed by king Khengarji I, who gathered under him twelve Jadeja noble landowning families, who were also related to him, as well as two noble families of the Waghela Rajput community. Khengarji and his successors retained the allegiance of these Bhayat (chieftains) until the mid-1700s.
The Jadejas have been practitioners of female infanticide and persisted in this despite it offending the sensitivities of Europeans during the British colonial period. Their high social status and the rigid caste system that forbade marriage with lower social groups contributed to tradition because it was difficult and costly to arrange suitable marriages for female offspring, with substantial dowries often being required. The tradition continues to some degree today, although where modern facilities are available it can take the form of female foeticide.
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