The purpose of this paper is twofold; first the paper explores and describes the complex ways in which social exclusion can (sometimes) be reconstituted within policy attempts at social inclusion: the quota policy in India. Second, the paper provides a grounded account of the connectedness of inclusion/exclusion and an illustration of how those positioned as excluded can avoid and manage the "problem" of exclusion by "passing" as the more privileged "other". The substantive focus of this paper is with the caste-based experiences of Dalit students at one elite Indian university.