Katiyar steps in; it’s testing times in Kanshiram’s lab

Clearly,the election here is Hindutva versus Mayawati’s Dalit-Brahmin combination.

Ambedkar Nagar has 20 per cent Dalit population. In the 2007 Assembly polls,when Mayawati forged her Dalit-Brahmin combine,the BSP won all five Assembly seats in the constituency.

It is the old Akbarpur (reserved) constituency,with some changes. Jahangirganj Assembly segment,from where Mayawati was once elected to the Assembly,is now part of Sant Kabir Nagar. In Jahangirganj’s place,Gosaiganj has been added.

Mayawati has fielded a Brahmin,Rakesh Pandey,once a Mulayam acolyte. Perhaps that is why traditional BSP supporters do not really like him.

It is like “Bagh aur bakari ek hi ghat par,” says Mainu Ram of Ariyauna village,describing Pandey’s presence as a BSP candidate.

Nevertheless,Ram is keen that Mayawati should be the next prime minister and will vote for Pandey. But he doubts if the Brahmins in his village will do the same. A major problem with Pandey,an industrialist,is that his brother Pawan is a notorious character.

Over the years,several of the castes that Kanshiram had united under the BSP have drifted away to the SP,which has fielded its sitting MP Shankh Lal Manjhi.

“Except the Dalits,almost every caste that Kanshiramji had brought under the BSP banner has deserted the party. This election will also see the departure of Rajbhars because of the ticket given to Pandey,” said Ghuraul Rajbhar,a native of Bairangpur. Transport Minister Ram Achal Rabhar is working overtime to prevent this from happening. “This is just a rumour. Everything is now settled,” said Chandra Prakash Verma,chairman of the local municipality,who belongs to the BSP.

Other BSP bigwigs,including Parliamentary Affairs Minister Lalji Verma,Fisheries Minister Dharamraj Nishad,and the party’s eastern UP co-ordinator Tribhuwan Dutt are also campaigning for Pandey.

A lot will depend on the Muslims. “In case the Muslims side with the BSP,Katiyar will have a difficult time,” said Prithwi Ram Tripathi in Bairangpur village.

Pandey knows this and has ensured some Muslims always accompany him on the campaign trail. But the difficulty is that many Muslims have not liked the fact that Pandey was brought in by replacing Atahar Khan at the eleventh hour.

The Muslims,most of whom are weavers,have another grouse. “When Mulayam was the chief minister,we used to get electricity for 20 hours. Under Maya raj,we get it only for 8-10 hours”,said Abdul Hakim,a resident of Kashmiriya locality of Tanda town.

Whatever the results,the results could write a new chapter in the history of the BSP that Kanshiram had founded.

Locals recall him as a pillion rider on the motorcycle of an associate R K Choudhari,who is now contesting the election from Mohanlalganj with the support of the Congress.

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