As Rajput anger against BJP simmers in west UP, Mayawati and Akhilesh sense an opportunity, take aim

“The Kshatriya community’s numbers among the upper caste in UP is very high. It is disheartening to see that BJP and other parties, who claim to be supportive of the Kshatriyas, have ignored them, especially in west UP. The BSP has given proper representation to Kshatriyas in the region. In Ghaziabad, we have fielded a Kshatriya candidate. Earlier, we gave the ticket to a Punjabi candidate but later we realised that their population is high in Lakhimpur Kheri. So, we have given the ticket there to a Punjabi Sikh candidate,” Mayawati said at the Ramlila Ground in Ghaziabad’s Kavi Nagar.

The party initially fielded Kaushambi-based businessman Anshay Kalra from Ghaziabad. But a few days later, the party changed its decision and Pundir was given the Ghaziabad ticket while Kalra was moved to the Kheri Lok Sabha constituency.

During the 1.4-km-long roadshow from Maliwada Chowk to Chaudhary Mod at Ambedkar Road, Modi stood atop an open jeep along with Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. (Express photo by Gajendra Yadav)

Mayawati said she welcomes the decision of the Kshatriya community’s mahapanchayats to support the party that fields the most Thakur candidates.

Her comments came two days after SP president Akhilesh Yadav recognised Kshatriyas present at his rally in Gautam Buddh Nagar (Noida) by their turbans. “I am seeing honour and pagdi (turban) on the heads. Those who had been traditionally voting for some other party, I am grateful for their political awareness this time that they are going to support ‘bicycle (SP symbol)’ with honour and pagdi,” he said.

SP’s Gautam Buddh Nagar district secretary Hemant Raghav, who is a Kshatriya, said, “The people with pagdi in the audience were a Kshatriya and Akhilesh Yadav ji recognised their presence. They are going to support the SP this time because they are upset with the BJP that has insulted and neglected in this election,” he said, adding that the party had sensed the “anti-BJP sentiment” among Thakurs. “The SP held two ‘Kshatriya sammelans’ and a panchayat of Thakurs in Gautam Buddh Nagar.”

The SP has fielded a Gurjar candidate, Dr Mahendra Singh Nagar, from Gautam Buddh Nagar. the BJP candidate is sitting MP and former minister Mahesh Sharma who is a Brahmin, and the BSP nominee is Rajendra Singh Solanki who is from the Kshatriya community. Solanki said there are almost 4.5 lakh Kshatriya votes in the constituency and the BSP was making an effort to connect with them.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav

In the eight constituencies of west UP that voted last Friday, the BJP gave a ticket to only one Thakur candidate. Kunwar Sarvesh Singh was in the fray from Moradabad but passed away on Saturday. Of the eight more constituencies in the region going to polls on April 26, there are no Thakur candidates in the fray from the BJP. Among these candidates, two are Brahmins, two are Vaishyas, one is a Gurjar, and one is a Jat. BJP ally Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) has fielded a Jat candidate in Baghpat. The biggest Rajput leader who was dropped by the party this time was former General V K Singh who represented Ghaziabad in the outgoing Lok Sabha.

“The party is aware of the simmering discontentment among the Kshatriya voters,” said a BJP leader in Gautam Buddh Nagar. “Dr Mahesh Sharma ji is touring the villages of Kshatriya voters. The BJP here has two Thakur MLAs — Pankaj Singh from Noida and Dhirendra Singh from Jewar — and both have been deployed to work among Thakur voters.”

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a roadshow in Ghaziabad and was accompanied by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who is a Thakur. The BJP has also organised a rally by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in Ghaziabad.

Why not everyone in BJP is worried

But not all in the ruling party are perturbed. “Only the Opposition is creating propaganda about Kshatriyas in an attempt to get their votes. But the fact is that Kshatriyas have always been with the BJP. They worship Lord Ram and hence they will not go away from BJP. The maximum impact of this propaganda could be the loss of around 10% of Thakur votes in the region. But the support of Jats due to the alliance with the RLD will compensate for that loss,” said a BJP leader in Ghaziabad.

State BJP spokesperson Avneesh Tyagi said, “There is no discontent among Thakurs against BJP. All such rumours are propaganda by Opposition parties who have become issueless in this election. The BJP has given representation to the Kshatriya community in the government and the organisation.”