How SP-BSP alliance math is playing out on the ground in UP
ALIENATION Yadav and Jatav castes in UP feel neglected by the state government. This sentiment may hurt the BJP
VARANASI/JAUNPUR/BHADOHI: The first is a senior Yadav government official. The second is a junior Jatav employee in a government department. Both belong to east Uttar Pradesh, but work in different parts of the state.
Both can’t be named because government regulations bar them from articulating political views openly. But in extended conversations with HT, both — separately — answered a question which perhaps lies at the heart of the battle in UP.
Even as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has co-opted significant elements of Hindu society, including many backward and Dalit groups, two social formations — Yadavs and Jatavs — remain at the forefront of the opposition to the BJP. They, along with Muslims, form the core of the social coalition of the Samajwadi Party (Sp)-bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) alliance. How did this come about? And more crucially, amid reports of a very high degree of transfer of votes on both sides, how is it working on the ground?
The tale of two voters illustrates the churn on the ground and indicates the possible synergy in the alliance is because of pressure from below, rather than talks or diktats at the top .
THE YADAV ANGER
The story of BJP’S attitude to Yadavs is one of exclusion, says the Yadav official. The community comprises close to 10% of the population.
“There are four broad metrics on which you can judge how a party is dealing with a community when in power. One — is it giving representatives of the community share in political power, ministerial positions, tickets for elections? Two, is it giving the officials from the community important postings and responsibilities, or is it deliberately excluding them? Three, is it giving them political postings like chairmen of government departments? And four, on the ground, how do local government functionaries, particularly the daroga (police officer) in the thana (station), treat members of the community ?”
On all four metrics, the Yadav official claimed, the BJP government — particularly the Yogi Adityanath regime — has adopted a policy of deliberate exclusion of Yadavs. “We have no political power; Yadav officials are harassed; Yadavs don’t even go to the thana now because they feel there is no point. This is what has led to consolidation of all of us behind the SP-BSP alliance and shed our deep antagonism to the BSP.”
But was it not the case that when SP was in power, the reverse was true and Yadavs enjoyed all the power? The official rejects the contention and claimed the BJP had a historic opportunity to reconcile with the community after its victory. “We anyway thought of the BJP as a party of savarnas, forward castes. Yet many Yadavs voted for Modi in 2014. But the party’s general attitude and Yogi’s in particular, alienated us entirely.” But hasn’t the BJP now become a more inclusive outfit? “Their attitude to backward (classes) is patronising, one of condescension. It is not willing to accept assertive backwards or Dalits.” This anger, he claimed, generated pressure from below on SP and BSP to come together. “Give no credit to Akhilesh Yadav or Mayawati for this alliance. It is all from the ground.”
THE DALIT VOICE
He works in the public works department in an east UP town which voted on Sunday. He belongs to the Jatav sub-caste, which is almost 14% of UP’S population, and has been traditionally loyal to the BSP. And he is clear about his voting choice and what dictated it.
“I will vote for the BSP, irrespective of whether they win or lose.” But did he feel cheated that Behenji, as Mayawati is called, tied up with SP, a party with which the community had a long antagonistic relationship? “Not at all. Behenji realised that she cannot win on her own. An alliance was necessary. Modi may or may not become prime minister again but in my seat, and several other seats in Purvanchal, this alliance will do well.”
What was his problem with the BJP? “We have no sunwai, hearing, when BJP comes to power. Our superiors in government offices look at us with suspicion. We are made to feel like outsiders.” He added that there was another major concern in the community now. “Many people feel that BJP is playing with reservations that Babasaheb (Ambedkar) had given us in the constitution. Look, they cut 10% and gave it to the upper castes.”
But when pointed out that this was not true and the reservation to economically weaker sections was an addition — not at the cost of existing quotas — the Dalit official responded, “There is a game afoot. It is the first step. They will change the Constitution.” And what about the welfare schemes, which Modi claims has benefited the poorest, among them many Dalits? He responded, “Look at toilets. Most are incomplete. They are not used often. And when people go to ask for work to be completed, the village pradhan asks for his share in the money. Look at gas cylinders. How many households have been able to refill it?”
Like the Yadav official, the Dalit functionary claimed they may have given the benefit of doubt to Modi, but it was the Yogi government’s attitude that alienated the community.
IS IT ENOUGH?
The BJP’S response to such voices is two-fold. On one hand, party strategists claim Yadavs and Jatavs will fragment and a section from both communities will vote for BJP. On the other hand, they also argue that these social groups did not vote for BJP in the last election, in any case, and by themselves, they would not be able to upset the BJP’S tally too drastically.
But both the men HT spoke to are confident that the Yadav-jatav-muslim combination will not only stay together but expand to bring in other groups.
But irrespective of how the electoral math eventually shapes up, the tale of two voters of the alliance is an illustration of how ‘caste politics’, often viewed derisively, plays out on the ground. Caste determines opportunities and livelihoods. It is inextricably linked to political power in UP.
And it is the exclusion from power which has led to pressure from below and the constitution of what is arguably the most important Opposition alliance in the country. Whether it is enough to change the outcome will be seen on May 23. NEWDELHI: A communist veteran who served in the Left Front government of West Bengal, voted out in 2011 after being in power for 34 years, says the Bharatiya Janata Party has Trinamool Congress leader and chief minister Mamata Banerjee to thank for its entry into the state. He is resentful of the BJP’S big-bang arrival in Bengal and the TMC remaining the largest political force and laments the decline of the Left and the Congress.
All three are interlinked in many ways.
The BJP’S inability to find an electoral base in the “nationalist” state of Bengal has been a sore point for the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and its affiliates for decades. The Sangh Parivar’s groundwork did not reap electoral benefits for the BJP and past alliances, such as with Banerjee, did not deliver a payback.the BJP remained a fringe player in the state until the 2014 parliamentary elections that gave it the first ray of hope in Bengal – two Lok Sabha seats out of 42 and nearly 8.7 million votes. It was the BJP’S best performance ever on its own in Bengal.
Today, it has grown in size, found a voice that’s louder than it ever was before, inducted a new set of local leaders, and is trying to consolidate the Hindu vote with a hardline approach as an answer to Mamata Banerjee’s politics.
The Banerjee regime – much like the Left Front when it ruled Bengal – banks on the support of the state’s 27% Muslim population. The Communists blame her for going too far – unlike the Left Front – to keep her hold over the minority vote, often mixing religion and politics that was alien to Bengal. There were controversies over a government ban on the immersion of idols after Vijayadashami during Durga Puja because it coincided with Muharram. The high court lifted the ban, and Banerjee did not shy away from expressing her displeasure. The daggers were out too when her government attempted a ban on the display of arms in Ram Navami processions. There were many more, and the BJP made the best of the Left Front leaders’ reluctance to take a position on religious matters. Under its current leadership, the BJP is aggressive and unapologetic about its Hindu credentials. The more Banerjee tried to keep her minority vote safe, the wider it left the door for the BJP to enter Bengal.
The BJP and RSS affiliates did all they could to position themselves as the main challenger to Banerjee; questioning her track record in government and policies towards the minorities, and taking on her TMC on the ground. Bengal’s politics eventually became a BJP versus TMC battle.
Banerjee stormed to power in Bengal in 2011 with a promise of “poriborton” (change). Her party today mirrors the Left Front in some ways. The involvement of the party cadre in government matters at the local level is rampant; and what Banerjee faced under Left Front rule, she unleashed on her rivals after coming to power. The chit fund scandal and allegations of political patronage that the suspects in it enjoyed took the sheen off Banerjee’s claim of change. Political violence in the run-up to elections and refusal to grant permission to opposition leaders to campaign exposed her vulnerability.
With its resources and cadre, the BJP managed to milk each of these to rise as a political force in Bengal. The shifting loyalties of TMC leaders added more muscle to the BJP, while the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Congress struggled to stay afloat in the absence of a narrative and organisational structure.
In some ways, the BJP’S Bengal story mirrors that in Uttar Pradesh, which it won over by building a narrative, forging alliances and playing to the Hindu gallery. The result: BJP and its ally Apna Dal won 73 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in 2014, and followed that up by storming to power in India’s most populous state in 2017. The TMC remains the largest force in Bengal, but the BJP has arrived as a contender. For the BJP, if Uttar Pradesh was the story of 2014, it is hoping that Bengal will be the story of 2019.