The Indian Express (Delhi Edition)
Where it took off, Bahujan formula wanes
Facing competition for core caste as well as non-traditional votes, BSP banks on goodwill for candidates
BUNDELKHAND
THERE IS not one constituency out of Bundelkhand’s 19 that the BSP hasn’t won in one election or the other. It has performed consistently well in the region, which has a large population of Dalits and backward castes. In 1991, Bundelkhand accounted for five of the BSP’S 12 seats in Uttar Pradesh. In 2007, the party peaked here, with 14 of the region’s then 21 seats.
It was here that BSP founder Kanshi Ram had successfully stitched his “pachasi versus pandrah” formula, seeking to consolidate the “85 per cent” — Dalits, backward castes, Muslims — against the “15 per cent” comprising upper castes.
Today, most of the old leaders groomed by Kanshi Ram have parted ways with the BSP. Whatever leaders it had among backward castes such as Kurmi, Nishad and Kushwaha have either left or faded in prominence. Backward caste leaders Vishambhar Prasad Nishad, R K Singh Patel, Shiv Charan Prajapati, Babu Singh Kushwaha are no longer with the party, nor are Dalit leaders Daddu Prasad and Gayadeen Anuragi.
With the pachasi pandrah theme having gone virtually obsolete, the BSP is banking on the goodwill of its candidates. It has fielded seven upper-caste candidates and seven OBCS, besides five Dalits in reserved seats. In its efforts to woo upper castes, a huge hurdle is the BJP that has emerged as an alternative in the region. Besides, the BSP is also facing stiff competition in garnering support from its traditionally loyal bases. Kushwahas in Banda district are now vocal about their support for BJP, mainly after the exit of the leaders like Babu Singh Kushwaha and Swami Prasad Maurya.
Vijay Patel, who belongs to the Kurmi OBC community, is attending a rally by Mayawati in Naraini at the BSP’S request. He says his vote in Chitrakoot, however, is for the BJP. “Paanch, paanch saal inko dekh liya, ab unko dekhenge (we have seen SP and BSP governments for five years each, now we will look at the BJP),” says Patel, a labourer.
“I will vote for the lotus,” says Man Singh Kotarya, a labourer of the Kori sub-caste of Dalits. “The note ban has not hurt us. Only the rich have been affected. [Narendra] Modiji made us look equal to the rich.” Kali Charan Verma, who votes in Banda, says, “I came to listen to Behenji, but I feel she will not be able to win this time.”
Mata Deen, a Dalit who has come from Chitrakoot, will stick with the BSP. “I don’t even think what my second choice would be,” says the labourer.
BSP founder member Babulal Kushwaha agrees that things have changed. “In the late 1980s when we established the pachasi pandrah formula, people of Dalit and backward communities were tired of upper-caste dominance. So it didn’t take us much time to unite these castes,” he says. “Now, younger people are free of the baggage of older generations. The caste factor is losing its edge in politics’ iski dhaar kund hoti ja rahi hai.”
Getting the votes of the caste its candidates represent, too, is looking like a challenging task in many seats as other parties too have fielded candidates from the same castes. This could disturb the party’s core formula of combining its base vote with the votes from the candidate’s caste.
In Baberu of Banda, for example, the BSP and SP candidates are both Yadavs. In Tindwari, BSP candidate Jagdish Prajapati is competing for OBC Kumhar votes with the BJP’S Brajesh Prajapati. In Madhaugarh, the BSP’S Girish Awasthi is vying for Brahmin votes with Congress’s Vinod Chaturvedi. In Kalpi, BSP candidate Chhote Singh is in competition for Thakur votes with the Congress’s Kanti Singh and BJP’S Narendra Pal Singh.
In Lalitpur, BSP candidate Santosh Kushwaha is up against the BJP’S Ram Ratan Kushwaha. In Chitrakoot, the BSP’S Jagdish Gautam and the BJP’S Chandrika Prasad Upadhyaya are both Brahmins. And in Manikpur, the BSP’S Chandrabhan Patel is pitted against the BJP’S R K Singh Patel, a wellknown Kurmi leader.
In such a situation, local BSP leaders concede, upper caste voters might rather prefer the BJP or the SP. They also acknowledge a tough contest in getting non-dalit support in the five reserved seats where all their candidates are Dalits.
It boils down to the goodwill the BSP candidates enjoy. Chaukdi Lal Soni, a BSP supporter in Atarra, says BSP candidate Gaya Charan Dinkar, Leader of the Opposition in the assembly, is a “humble and accessible candidate with clean image”. “I have been associated with him for some time. He is visible in the area and meets people,” says Soni.
In Hamirpur, where the BSP candidate is Sanjay Dixit, shopkeeper Sukhdeo Prasad Shivhare says, “Dixit is good-natured and has a clean image. He is accessible to people.”
Mahoba’s voters know BSP candidate Arimardan Singh, a former MLA, as “Nana”. “Nana has been in almost all parties but there is no resentment against him. Personally, he is liked very much,” says Tej Pratap Yadav, pradhan of a village.