BSP’s poll rout: Candidates blame weak support within, shift of Dalit votes & Akash’s removal from campaign

Mayawati has convened a meeting of all BSP national office-bearers and leaders from all states in Lucknow on Sunday to review the Lok Sabha results. The BSP fielded candidates in 424 Lok Sabha seats across the country, including 79 in Uttar Pradesh, and none of them won.

Speaking to The Indian Express on Saturday, BSP candidates listed the likely reasons for their defeat. OBC leader and former MP Balkrishna Chauhan, who lost from Ghosi in eastern UP, after getting 18 per cent votes, said that the Congress’s campaign focusing on “protection of the Constitution” was “effective on the ground level” and voters were upset over the issue of unemployment too. But they preferred the SP-Congress alliance over the BSP to meet their “anti-BJP” sentiment, said Chauhan. “An undercurrent developed in the BSP’s vote base (Jatav Dalits) that the Constitution was under threat and the BJP may change it. They voted for Congress, not for SP because it was the campaign pitch of the Congress,” he said.

On the BSP’s part, Chauhan said that now the party was lacking the “activeness” that was shown in the past by the party founder, the late Kanshiram. There was also lack of communication within party ranks and no enthusiasm in the party organisation, he said.

Chauhan said that Kashiram’s slogan was —“jiski jitna sankhya bhari, uski utni hissedari (people should get representation in proportion to their population)”. This slogan reached out to all castes and communities, he said.

Chauhan added that Mayawati, however, changed that slogan to “jiski jitni tayyari, uski utni hissedari” (representation as per preparations).” “That change of formula and lack of activeness proved fatal for the party. Earlier during Kanshiram’s period, all the communities worked collectively in the party in the past. At present, how can you establish your entire politics on the basis of one vote base?”

Chauhan also said that the removal of Akash Anand from his post in the party made an impact on young voters because they want to listen a youngster. He said the party should have given a warning to Akash — if there was anything wrong in his speech that drew flak from the BJP — but his role in the campaign should have been maintained.

Another candidate from central UP said that the sole responsibility of campaign and meetings in his constituency was on him only as the party has no mass leader after Mayawati. Other parties have a battery of leaders. “Earlier, the BSP had leaders from different castes and communities who had personal following but either they left the party or the party expelled them over time,” said the leader, who did not wish to be named.

The BSP candidate in Kannauj Imran Bin Zafar, who got only 6.7 per cent votes, said that SP-Congress successfully created “propaganda” that the BSP was “a B-team” of the BJP.

Zafar claimed that the BSP organisation was not strong at the district level and he contested the election almost without active participation of the organisation. “None of the former office-bearers and senior leaders supported me. Only one rally of Behenji (Mayawati) was held for me. I will present all these points before Behenji when I meet her.”

Zafar added that removal of Akash made a major impact on Muslim voters. “The day he (Akash) was removed on May 7, I received many messages from people saying that Akash has been removed because he started speaking against the BJP. That damaged us a lot.” Zafar said Dalits and Muslims voted for the SP-Congress alliance on the basis of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and his campaign that focused on the Constitution and the promise of Rs 8,500 for poor women. He claimed that nearly 60 per cent of the total 3.5 lakh Jatav Dalits voted for the SP-Congress alliance.

In Jat-dominated Muzaffarnagar of western UP, BSP’s OBC leader Dara Singh Prajapati got only 13.32 per cent votes.

Prajapati too claimed that he did not get due support from the BSP organisation. “I contested on my own strength. I got votes of OBCs, including Prajapati, Saini, Pal, Kashyap communities, but not from other castes. The main reason for defeat was that the organisation did not work and Muslims and Dalits shifted away from BSP.”

Mahendra Singh Yadav, who lost in Sitapur by getting 9 per cent votes, said that Sitapur has around 1.5 lakh Jatav votes and a majority of them voted for the SP-Congress tie-up. Yadav also said the removal of Akash from the campaign sent a “wrong message” to voters.

Mayawati had removed her nephew Akash as both the party national coordinator and “successor”, a few days after he was booked for “promoting enmity” in his speech in Sitapur (on April 28).

Vijender Singh (a Jat leader) who lost in Bijnor said that he was satisfied with 2.19 lakh votes (21.38 per cent vote share). “I got the cooperation from the BSP organisation. But I got 2.19 lakh votes… that is my personal vote, not the party’s vote. I have got more votes in assembly segments this time than the BSP got in the 2022 assembly polls.”

Indu Chaudhri (a Jatav) who got two per cent votes in Lalganj seat said that her campaign was “good, with support of party organisation. “But the party should work consistently in public to prevent change of voters’ mindset at the last moment under the influence of social media,” she said.

BSP’s UP state president Vishwanth Pal said that he has sent a report to Mayawati about the party’s performance in UP “after a review with responsible members”.

Pal, however, denied the candidates’ claims of lack of support from the organisation. On the impact of removal of Akash from the party post, he said, “Whatever decision Behenji takes is good and in the interest of Akash ji.”

“Let’s see what directions Behenji gives on Sunday,” Pal said.