Ahead of the 2027 assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has indicated its social and organizational equations through the list of Rajya Sabha candidates. The party has fielded eight candidates in the elections for 10 Rajya Sabha seats of Uttar Pradesh. The special thing is that among the eight names, three OBC, two Dalit, two Brahmin and one Thakur faces have been given place. That means five candidates come from backward and Dalit classes while three candidates represent the upper caste community. Two women candidates are also included in this list.
This list of BJP is being linked to the social equation of 2027 election preparations. On one hand, the party has given representation to different OBC groups like Lodhi, Pal and Kurmi, while on the other hand it has indicated to broaden the social base by giving place to two Dalit faces. Besides, by including two Brahmin and one Thakur face, the party has also kept its traditional upper caste base balanced in the list. That is, the eight names released for Rajya Sabha show not just the selection of candidates, but a picture of social representation, regional balance and keeping active faces in the organization.
Lodhi-Pal-Kurmi's OBC equation
There are three faces from the OBC category in the BJP list. Dharampal Singh Lodhi, Prakash Pal and Shruti Gangwar are being seen as representatives of this class. Dharampal Singh is the MLA from Amla seat of Bareilly and the Minister of Livestock and Dairy Development in the state government. He comes from Lodhi community. His name being included in the Rajya Sabha list is considered important from the point of view of the equation of Western Uttar Pradesh and Lodhi society. The second name is of Prakash Pal. He is the President of State OBC Morcha of BJP and has been active at the organizational level in Kanpur-Bundelkhand region for a long time. His selection to Rajya Sabha is being seen as giving a boost to the OBC face associated with the organisation.
The third name is Shruti Gangwar. Bareilly resident Shruti Gangwar is the daughter of Jharkhand Governor and former Union Minister Santosh Gangwar. His name is being linked to the representation of Kurmi community. In this way, even within the OBCs, BJP has given place to Lodhi, Pal and Kurmi representation instead of relying on a single social group.
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Second big message from two Dalit faces
Vidyasagar Sonkar and Priyanka Singh Rawat are two Dalit faces in the BJP list. Vidyasagar Sonkar comes from Jaunpur and is a former MP, former MLC and has held various responsibilities in the party organization. Priyanka Singh Rawat has been a former Lok Sabha MP from Barabanki and has also been playing an active role in the BJP organization. Through them, along with Dalit representation, the party has also given place to a woman face in the Rajya Sabha list. The inclusion of two Dalit faces among the eight candidates is also in the news because backward and Dalit social equations have always been at the center of electoral politics in the politics of Uttar Pradesh.
upper caste balance with two brahmins and one thakur
BJP has also not ignored the upper caste community in the list. Radhakant Ojha and Gopi Krishna Pandey come from Brahmin community, while Ram Pratap Singh Chauhan belongs to Rajput i.e. Thakur community. Radhakant Ojha has been a senior advocate of Allahabad High Court and former president of the High Court Bar Association. Gopi Krishna Pandey has been associated with the BJP organization for a long time. Ram Pratap Singh Chauhan is from Agra and has been active in the organization as the state general secretary of BJP. His name is included among the faces with organizational experience of the party.
Trust in organization instead of old faces
Another big aspect of this list is that BJP has not re-nominated the sitting Rajya Sabha members. Many old names including Union Ministers Hardeep Singh Puri and BL Verma are out of the list this time. The party has fielded eight new faces. This indicates that this time BJP has given priority to leaders associated with state politics and organization instead of big national faces for Rajya Sabha. The list of candidates includes ministers, former MPs, state officials, Morcha officials and leaders working in the organization for a long time.
Place for two female faces also
Priyanka Singh Rawat and Shruti Gangwar are the two women candidates in BJP's eight-member list. The political and social bases of both are different. On one hand, Priyanka Rawat is a former MP and an active face in the organization, while Shruti Gangwar is associated with the Bareilly region and the Kurmi social equation. This shows a combination of women's participation and regional balance along with caste representation in the list.
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What is the sign for 2027?
2027 assembly elections are ahead in Uttar Pradesh and in such a situation, BJP's Rajya Sabha list is not being limited to the Upper House elections only. The party has given place to three OBCs, two Dalits, two Brahmins and one Thakur among the eight names. Five names are from backward and Dalit classes, while three names belong to the upper caste community.
Amidst Samajwadi Party's PDA i.e. backward, Dalit and minority equation politics, this list of BJP is being seen as an attempt to balance its social base among different classes. Although the list of Rajya Sabha candidates does not decide the outcome of the 2027 assembly elections, the selection of candidates definitely gives an indication of the social and organizational priorities of the party. Looking at the eight names, BJP has given representation to Lodhi, Pal, Kurmi, Dalit, Brahmin and Thakur communities. Also, active faces in the organization have been brought forward.