UP bypolls a ‘trial run’ for BJP before 2017

The three Assembly byelections in Uttar Pradesh, scheduled to be held next week on February 13, are being treated as a “trial run” by the BJP for the Assembly elections next year.

The BJP is practising “aggressive Hindutva” in its campaigning to ensure polarising of voters on religious lines. The party is, once again, revving up its “Hindus first” campaign among dalits and with the Bahujan Samaj Party not contesting the byelections, the dalit vote bank is apparently up for grabs.

In the two Assembly seats in western UP — Deoband in Saharanpur and Muzaffarnagar — the BJP does not have to make much of an effort to polarise votes since the atmosphere continues to remain communally surcharged since the Muzaffarnagar riots in 2013. In Bikapur, in Faizabad in central UP, the advent of Asaduddin Owaisi of All-India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) on Thursday has also left Hindus polarised to an extent.

Interestingly, all the three seats going to byelections have a sizeable Muslim population with dalit playing the balancing factor.

The BJP in all three seats, is pitted directed against the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, despite its lacklustre campaign, has queered the pitch by fielding Muslim candidates in all three seats and thereby, chipping away at the SP’s vote base.

“If we can enlist dalit support in the byelections, we can hope to maintain the trend in the Assembly elections too. We are playing the aggressive Hindu card in order to override the caste factor and make OBCs and dalits turn into Hindus,” said a BJP functionary.

Though none of the top leaders have yet campaigned on the seats where byelections are being held, the local MLAs and party cadres are working overtime to keep the heat on with slogans like “Hindu ke samman mein, BJP maidan mein” and “Bahu-beti ka samman, Ram ka naam aur Modi ka kaam -yeh hai BJP ki pehchaan”.

Besides, the BJP candidates in all three segments are known as Hindu hardliners and at are ease in running the campaign.

The Samajwadi Party, on the other hand, is cashing on the sympathy wave by fielding the relatives of legislators whose death has led to the by-election.

In Deoband, Meena Rana widow of minister Rajendra Singh Rana, is the SP candidate while Gaurav Swaroop, son of minister Chittaranjan Swaroop is claiming his father’s legacy on a SP ticket. In Bikapur, Anand Sen Yadav is contesting the seat vacated with his father Mitrasen Yadav’s death.

“Besides, the development done by the Akhilesh government is the biggest factor in these by-elections”, said a senior minister in the Akhilesh government.