UP polls: BJP fears it could lose brahmin votes

In Uttar Pradesh, which has complex caste dynamics, the BJP’s electoral gameplan could receive a major jolt if the Mayawati-led BSP manages to revive its “social engineering” agenda. After the Dayashakar Singh row, the BJP’s poll strategists are worried that if BSP manages to replicate its social engineering formula, which had brought it to power in 2007 with a huge majority, it could again rob the saffron party of its core vote base, brahmins and baniyas. The BSP’s then-famous slogan was “Brahmin shankh bajayega, hathi badta jayega (Brahmin will blow the conch and the elephant (the BSP’s symbol) will march ahead)”. The BJP was later forced to alter its conventional strategies regarding its core vote bank. In UP politics, Thakurs are considered as adversaries by both dalits and brahmins, one of the reasons why the BSP had managed to woo brahmins.

The Assembly elections in UP are scheduled for early 2017 and the BJP is desperately trying to come back to power in the state where it last formed a government in 2002. Most opinion polls have put the BSP ahead of other political parties.

Efforts are on, sources said, by the BSP to use the Dayashankar Singh row as an insult to “dalit honour” by a Thakur. Singh, a prominent Thakur face in the party from eastern UP, was expelled from the party for using abusive language against Ms Mayawati. The BJP had to face severe criticism from its opponents over the issue, which also saw Parliament getting disrupted.

The brahmins are already “confused” by the BJP’s measures in wooing dalits and OBCs, who are numerically stronger than both the brahmins and Thakurs. While the BJP had been busy fine-tuning its caste arithmetic, its strategy to take on the ruling SP government over the law and order situation seems to be going in BSP’s favour.

The Mayawati-led outfit is perceived as tough on this issue. As part of its election strategy, the BJP had been wooing non-core votebank of the BSP along with the OBCs to build up a perfect social combination. Yadavs are considered Mulayam Singh Yadav led SP’s backbone and they more or less have remained loyal to the SP. Muslims have voted for both the SP and BSP and earlier Congress was their preferred choice. So the BJP is left with its core vote bank and a hope that non-Jatavs and OBCs would support it like they did in 2014 general elections.

However, there is a growing unease in the saffron camp about the revival of social engineering formula by the BSP, which would dent its poll prospects extensively. As part of its countermeasure, the BJP tried to go offensive after BSP leaders hit back at Dayashankar Singh and used “abusive language” against the women members of his family. Taking an aggressive stance on the issue, the BJP launched a counter-attack against the BSP for “traumatising” and using foul language against its expelled leader’s family members. It held protests at different places in UP highlighting how the BSP had dishonoured women and demanded actions against BSP leader Naseemuddin Siddiqui who thet alleged led the protest at Singh’s house.