Seventeen dalit BJP MPs from reserved constituencies in Uttar Pradesh will now carry forward the message of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the members of their community and bring them closer to the
Seventeen dalit BJP MPs from reserved constituencies in Uttar Pradesh will now carry forward the message of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the members of their community and bring them closer to the BJP fold for the upcoming UP Assembly elections.
These dalit MPs were especially invited to the Stand Up India programme in Noida on Tuesday and elaborated how the concept would benefit the dalits.
The Prime Minister, incidentally, paid glorious tributes to the late Jagjivan Ram and even blasted the Congress for ignoring the dalit leader at the Noida programme which coincided with the birth anniversary of the late leader.
“The dalit MPs will now be asked to move out into the dalit-populated areas and the 85 reserved Assembly constituencies and inform their community members about the policies of the government that have been designed to benefit them. When people from their own community speak on the issue, the impact will be greater,” said a senior party leader.
The leader said that Stand Up India has been designed to encourage entrepreneurs from the dalit community. “We do not just want to keep the dalits at the sustenance level. We want them to turn into job creators and entrepreneurs. The dalit leaders in the party will be given publicity material which they can use to promote the party in village and dalit-populated areas,” he added.
The 17 BJP MPs belong to reserved constituencies that include Misrikh, Hardoi, Robertsganj, Jalaun, Hathras, Etawah, Mohanlalganj, Basgaon, Agra, Shahjahanpur, Barabanki, Kaushambhi, Lalganj, Machhlishahr, Bahraich, Nagina and Bulandshahr.
Other dalit leaders in the party will also be entrusted a similar task but they will be deputed in non-reserved constituencies that have a sizeable dalit population.
The BJP has been making concerted efforts to woo dalits in Uttar Pradesh and the Prime Minister will be visiting Lucknow and Agra this month to attend programmes related to the birth anniversary of dalit icon B.R. Ambedkar.
At the executive meeting of the BJP’s state unit in Lucknow last week, the party leader also emphasised on the need for bringing dalits closer to the BJP. The party leaders said that while the anti-incumbency factor would help in dismantling the Samajwadi government, weaning away dalits from the BSP would leave the field clear for the BJP.
