Multiple-use common-pool resources (CPRs) are used for activities such as irrigation, fishing, and recreation (Steins and Edwards, 1998; Meinzen-Dick and van Der Koek, 2001; Ramachandran, 2006). While collective rules and institutions are key for managing CPRs (Ostrom, 1990; Schlager and Blomquist, 1998; Agrawal, 2003), more research is needed on specific strategies employed by resource user groups with power asymmetries to access, use, and manage resources from multi-use commons. Limited research finds that less powerful users respond to domination through strategies such as silence, non-participation, or solidarity (Agrawal, 2002; Cleaver, 2002; Kashwan, 2016; Mudliar and Koontz, 2021). These strategies, termed “everyday politics” (Kerkvliet, 1999), are shaped by power dynamics, social relations, the perceived meaning and value of the resource, observations of behaviors, and life experiences (Edwards and Steins, 1998). This research, therefore, explores how groups with power imbalances (i.e., farmers and Dhinwars, an Indigenous fishing community) manage and access multi-use commons such as the Maji-Malguzari (MM) tanks in eastern Vidarbha, Maharashtra, India, for their livelihoods. MM tanks, dating to the 16th century, are used by both groups, with farmers seeking to appropriate water for paddy irrigation and Dhinwars seeking to maintain water levels for their fish stock. By employing Kerkvliet’s concept of everyday politics, focus-group discussions, and interviews reveal that while Dhinwars may endure unfair conditions, they also employ various resistance strategies against farmer domination. By examining everyday politics between different resource user groups, this study aims to deepen understanding of the interplay between domination and resistance in natural resource management.
