Even as Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president Mayawati has preferred to maintain a policy of keeping away from the INDIA alliance and the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), a section of the party wants her to align with the Opposition bloc. A BSP insider said the party can win only if it connects with voters outside its traditional base of Jatav Dalits. “This will be possible only if we enter an alliance (with INDIA),” he said. BSP’s Jaunpur MP Shyam Singh Yadav said, “In my personal opinion, all parties, including the BSP, should unite against the BJP. However, we will follow what Behenji (Mayawati) decides.” He also felt a divided Opposition would benefit the BJP as votes would split. Another BSP MP said, “Given the current political scenario, it will be better if we join hands with the INDIA bloc. The BJP will stand to benefit if the BSP contests the polls alone and cuts into the vote of the INDIA bloc. Moreover, the BSP stands to lose if it goes alone as Muslim votes seem to be consolidated in favour of the Congress due to its alliance with the SP (Samajwadi Party) and RLD (Rashtriya Lok Dal).” The BSP, whose electoral fortunes have been on the decline since 2012, saw a revival in 2019 when it managed to win 10 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh as a part of the mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) with SP and RLD. Its current strength in the Lower House of Parliament stands at nine after Ghazipur MP Afzal Ansari was disqualified in May following his murder conviction. In the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, the Mayawati-led party won 20 seats in Uttar Pradesh and one in Madhya Pradesh while in 2014 it drew a blank. Following the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BSP parted ways with the SP and fought the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls last year alone. It returned with only a single seat and a vote share of just over 12%. This was in stark contrast to when the party won an absolute majority in 2007 with 206 seats and a 30.43% vote share in the 403-member House. In the following elections five years later, its tally dropped to 80 while the vote share came down to 25.95%. The party’s seat count plummeted in 2017 to nine seats with a 22.23% vote share. Meanwhile, another party MP said “anti-BJP” voters would not favour the BSP if the party does not appear to be in a position to defeat the ruling party. “The INDIA bloc is looking like a strong alternative to the BJP. In such a scenario, how can the BSP win only by having Jatavs as their voter base? If the BSP does not join the (Opposition) alliance, I will join the Congress or SP and contest the polls,” he said. Despite their opinion, none of the leaders have raised the matter with Mayawati. “Behenji hears the suggestions only from a set of trusted party leaders. Ultimately, she takes the final decision and everyone follows it,” the leader said. He also pointed out that Imran Masood, once a prominent Muslim face of the party in West UP, was expelled earlier this year after he praised the Congress and urged Mayawati to join the INDIA bloc. Recently, Amroha MP Danish Ali was suspended from the BSP over “anti-party” activities. Another party MP said pressure from the BJP might be preventing her from joining the INDIA bloc. Asked about the parliamentarians’ views, Uttar Pradesh BSP chief Vishwanath Pal only said that the party was holding daily meetings across the state to connect with people across communities before the parliamentary polls. “Behenji has asked us to prepare to fight in all 80 seats in the state. Candidate selection too has begun,” he said.
