Why VBA chief’s ‘backstage party worker’ wife Anjali Maydeo finds Patole, Ambedkar spat amusing

“I like to get things done rather than being on the stage. So I do occasionally (in my opinion) use my influence as ‘Anjali Tai’ to get a few things done,” she says. However, it was during the 2019 general elections that Maydeo was seriously engaged in developing women cadres as political workers in Akola. From booth management to counting agents, they were involved responsibly in each activity, and consciously equipped themselves to take up the tasks. Under the leadership of Rekha Thakur, state president of VBA and Ms Arundhati Shirsat, general secretary of the women’s wing, there are VBA mahila aghadi committees in almost all the districts and at least 80 per cent of the blocks across Maharashtra.

A space for women in decision making – women having the voice and choice to control their lives has always been an area of passion and commitment for Maydeo, and she has tried to contribute to this agenda both in academics as well as in the movement. “It was the most natural course of action to be involved in Bharip Bahujan Mahasangh’s Mahila wing. From 1998, they started celebrating 25th December, Manusmriti Dahan Divas — as Bhartiya Stree Mukti Din. Along with making a strong political statement, it allowed the party cadre to articulate women’s issues in their areas, draft resolutions, mobilise women, and organise big rallies. Without intending so, it became a capacity-building process,” she recalls.

This backstage party worker finds it infuriating when one-time colleagues from the people’s rights movement join forces with the dominant caste parties and advise VBA to “compromise” or “take two steps back to protect the Constitution”. The same appeal is not made to leaders of dominant caste parties who have been in power for years. “They do not ask the INC why they lost the support of Dalits, Muslims, and Adivasis which was their strong vote bank at one time. For me, the entire argument of seat sharing based on electoral merit reads like – you lack electoral merit, as you get only your community’s votes. This means we are unable to transfer dominant caste votes to you,” Maydeo points out.

“VBA’s main agenda is and will always remain to be ‘political power to the powerless’ and hence, while selecting the candidates, we always try to give representation to the communities who are looked upon as ‘vote banks’ but not as ‘worthy candidates’ as they lack numbers, and now money or muscle power. We did that in 2019 and we are doing it now,” Maydeo adds. In 2024, their candidates have come from various communities such as Dhivar, Teli, Mali, Gaund, Baudhh, Kunabi, Banjara, Lingayat, Matang, Dhanagar and three Muslim candidates have been declared so far. She admits though that personally she was not very happy as they have not fielded a woman candidate in this election till date.