A day ahead of Brahmin meet, disquiet in BSP

There seems to be some disquiet in the ranks of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) on the eve of its Brahmin sammelan in Lucknow tomorrow. The sa...

There seems to be some disquiet in the ranks of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) on the eve of its Brahmin sammelan in Lucknow tomorrow.

The sammelan comes on the heels of the series of mini sammelans organised by party general secretary Satish Mishra, in the state.

Party leaders are of the view that the sammelan has sent confusing signals to its rank and file apart from the more important, scheduled caste vote bank, and point to the results of the just concluded by-elections to four Assembly constituencies.

In the elections, the BSP lost all four seats to its arch rival, UP Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and the Samajwadi Party (SP) and its ally, Ajit Singh’s RLD, which won one seat. Though the party did not fare as badly as the BJP and Congress, it lost its sitting seat in Allahabad constituency.

Party sources say the attempt to woo the upper castes has made BSP cadres unhappy and confused.

Says a source, ‘‘The sammelans have so far had a majority of scheduled caste, with some brahmins, and both are visibly uncomfortable to share space with each other. The moment you dilute the party ideology, which is essentially anti-brahminism and upper-caste, you lose sight of the objective which can be dangerous for the party’s success.”

Sources also point out that Mayawati’s sustained campaign against the upper castes, now referring to them as snakes and cobras, is sending wrong signals to both upper castes and scheduled castes. They also say the upper castes are the first to ditch the party when it comes to a split, to align with other political forces. “The time will come soon when party leaders are going to openly criticise and challenge the move to woo the brahmins,” says the source.