Last month, Raj Narayan Rajbhar, a resident of Saimalpur village in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghazipur Lok Sabha constituency, had Rs 2,000 credited to his bank account under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN). “My relative has received the second instalment as well,” he says. “I think the scheme will continue if the Narendra Modi government comes to power again,” he adds. Ghazipur votes on May 19. Launched in February after the BJP’s defeat in three states in the Hindi heartland, the Prime Minister’s ambitious scheme for farmers may help the party in its fight against the SP-BSP gathbandhan in Uttar Pradesh. In several districts in eastern UP which The Indian Express visited, and which go to polls in the last two phases, farmers who had received the first and second instalments of the PM-KISAN scheme favoured the BJP over other parties. Lok Sabha Elections 2019 | Polling schedule, results date, constituency-wise results, how to check live counting According to a March 7 statement by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare, the first instalment of the PM-KISAN scheme (Rs 2, 000) was released for about 1.01 crore farmers across the country, amounting to a total fund release of Rs 2,021 crore. In UP, 74 lakh farmers received the first instalment. In Tulsipur village, on the outskirts of Ghazipur Sadar, Jai Shankar Kushwaha says the money helped him purchase school books for his two children. “The academic session started in April and without the money I would have had to wait for the sale of my wheat crop to buy the books. The Rs 2,000 helped,” says Kushwaha, who has received the first instalment. In Bind Basti, in the Jaunpur Lok Sabha constituency that votes on May 12, residents are upset with sitting BJP MP K P Singh, and are looking at the SP-BSP candidate, Shyam Singh Yadav (BSP), as an alternative. “He (Singh) has crossed the adjoining highway several times in the past five years but has never visited the villages. Such attitude is not acceptable,” says farmer Mevalal Bind. Also Read | In battleground UP, BJP banks on 48-hour booth management However, he adds, despite the party fielding Singh again, he will still vote for the BJP. “I will vote for him (Singh) to make Narendra Modi the Prime Minister this time too. Because of him I have received Rs 4,000 in two instalments under the PM-KISAN scheme,” says the 57-year-old, adding that he promptly withdrew the money. “Some of my neighbours said that if the government changes after elections, the money could get deducted.” In Jaunpur, the Binds belong to the Nishad community, and the BJP’s new alliance partner Sanjay Nishad (Nishad Party) has been campaigning for the party in the area. In the Phulpur Lok Sabha constituency, 72 km away, where the BJP lost the bypoll to the SP-BSP alliance candidate last year, Mukesh Mishra admits that caste is a deciding factor while voting. However, he says, the PM-KISAN scheme could change that this time. “I voted for the SP’s Kurmi candidate in the 2014 elections. But on May 12, I will vote for the BJP. The PM-KISAN helped me purchase fertiliser for my crops,” says the resident of Azad Nagar village. In the Rajbhar-dominated Sipah village in the Ballia Lok Sabha constituency, Jagdish Rajbhar (37) says the scheme helped his family while he was away working as a labourer in Chennai. “Last month, my mother said a bank official told them about Rs 2,000 being deposited in their account. I returned last week and withdrew the money,” says Rajbhar. “I am not a BJP supporter but I will vote for the party this time,” he adds. Ballia polls on May 19. In Sotipur village in the Macchlishahr Lok Sabha constituency, the verdict is not so clear. Rupendra Patel (53), a beneficiary of the PM-KISAN scheme says that while he voted for the BSP in 2014, the choice this time is between the Congress and BJP. “The BJP has given money to farmers while the Congress has promised Rs 72,000 under the NYAY scheme. I have not made up my mind yet,” he says.
