There was such a political stir in the politics of Uttar Pradesh after a meeting of Brahmin MLAs of Bharatiya Janata Party that the state president Pankaj Chaudhary had to repeatedly clarify that this meeting will not be held again, his party does not allow such meetings, if the MLAs do this again, disciplinary action will be taken against them. He even described such meetings as anti-constitutional. Many leaders of the Brahmin community are now vocally criticizing this decree. He says that if caste meetings of Rajput, Kurmi, Yadav and backward people can be held then what is the problem with this meeting of Brahmin community.
Now the tension regarding caste seems to be increasing within the Bharatiya Janata Party in UP. 52 Brahmin MLAs and Legislative Council members had held a meeting at the Lucknow residence of Kushinagar MLA PN Pathak. There has been a stir in UP BJP politics only after the meeting. The interesting thing is that not only BJP, but also Brahmin MLAs from other parties participated in this meeting. The top leadership of BJP in the state is linking this to an exercise of Thakur versus Brahmin. ,
Also read: How influential are Brahmins in UP? Know everything from figures and numbers
Pankaj Chaudhary, President, UP BJP:-
Bharatiya Janata Party is the party of all society. Our Constitution does not allow any public representative of Bharatiya Janata Party to hold meetings on the basis of caste. We have given a notice, a warning, a talk, instructions and a warning that no such meeting should take place in future.
What happened at PN Pathak’s house?
At the dinner party held at the house of BJP MLA PN Bathak, some MLAs complained about discrimination against Brahmins. Many Brahmin leaders of Purvanchal spoke out on this. Pictures of the meeting, names and pictures of the MLAs went viral on social media. The top leadership was uncomfortable with the meeting to such an extent that there was panic in the party. From Brijbhushan Sharan Singh to President Pankaj Chaudhary had to speak. BJP’s new UP president Pankaj Chaudhary publicly warned that such meetings on the basis of caste are against the party’s rules and values. If this happens further, it will be considered indiscipline and action will be taken.
Also read: Why did BJP gamble on Pankaj Chaudhary, how much is the power of Kurmi community?
Who have been the popular names among the MLAs?
Kashinath Shukla, Prakash Dwivedi, PN Pathak, Ankur Raj, Umesh Dwivedi (MLC), Ratnakar Mishra, Rakesh Goswami, Shalabh Mani Tripathi, Vinay Dwivedi.
What are people saying in defense of Brahmin MLA?
Brijbhushan Sharan Singh:-
I don’t see anything wrong in it. Let 4 Kshatriyas meet, 4 Brahmins meet, sit together and discuss, I do not see anything wrong in this. There was nothing wrong in the meeting of Brahmin MLAs. If someone finds something wrong in this, then the fault lies in his perspective, not in sitting and having dinner with Brahmin MLAs. Whoever is seeing wrong, is seeing, I am not seeing.
What is troubling the Brahmins?
There is another news in the camp within BJP. In August, MLAs from Rajput community also held a meeting. No warning was given by BJP. On one hand, organizational elections were being held in the party, on the other hand, people of Kshatriya community were uniting. Now the new BJP President has ordered that such a meeting should not take place. The Brahmin section of BJP is angry as to why the party is adopting such a dual attitude.
Read also: Two things, which make the 2027 census most special; Will anything be different from 2011?
Why has Pankaj Chaudhary shown strictness?
The top leadership of BJP is doing this exercise to ensure that caste-based factionalism does not form before the 2027 assembly elections. The year 2024 has seen the results of factionalism. The party, which had more than 60 seats in the Lok Sabha elections, has come down to 33. BJP had 73 seats in the year 2024, it got 62 in 2019. It was said that a large section of Brahmins were unhappy with the working style of BJP. Complaints were also received that the officials were ignoring the views of Brahmin leaders and were not paying any attention to them. There are elections in the year 2027, the party cannot take this risk again.
Is this the real fear?
Political analysts say that the real problem is not the meeting but the sharing of power. Brahmin groups can exert pressure for ticket distribution and ministerial posts. There are already so many caste equations in UP that BJP is not in a position to bear any more pressure. Already, other OBC castes are also demanding a share. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, BJP had suffered losses on many seats due to the resentment of a section of Thakurs. Now dissatisfaction is at its peak even among Brahmins.
Which caste has what share in UP BJP?
There are total 258 MLAs in UP BJP. There are maximum 84 OBC MLAs. There are 59 Dalits, 45 Thakurs, 42 Brahmins and 28 castes like Kayastha and Vaishva. The number of Thakurs and OBCs is also high in the Legislative Council.
How strong are Brahmins politically in UP?
Brahmin voters play a decisive role in UP. They are in a position to decide victory and defeat on more than 110 seats. Brahmin voters in Uttar Pradesh constitute about 10-12 percent of the total population. The condition of Brahmin voters is better in Purvanchal and Awadh. It has also played an important role in the election results of 2017 and 2022. Brahmin vote bank is a game changer on about 115 seats. After the new controversy, opposition parties are making offers to woo Brahmin voters. Political analysts believe that Brahmins, upper castes and non-Yadav castes have been the core voters of BJP.
What is the opposition thinking about Brahmin MLAs?
Akhilesh Yadav:-
Sir, please arrange the gathering of your loved ones.
And sending warning orders to others.
Akhilesh Yadav pointed out why BJP had not given this reaction when the Thakurs’ meeting was held in August. Congress has also talked about supporting Brahmins.
Ajay Rai, President, UP Congress:-
The way he was insulted by the BJP state president. A meeting of other castes was held and no action was taken on it. But there is talk of action being taken specifically targeting the Brahmin community. Certainly these people should take a strong stand on this. People of Congress party will support him against injustice.
How did BSP and SP do the politics of Brahmins?
Both Bahujan Samaj Party and Samajwadi Party have been claiming to be the parties of backward people. BSP has done wonders in UP with the support of Brahmin voters. In Uttar Pradesh, BSP had done successful social engineering in 2007 under the leadership of Mayawati. By keeping Satish Chandra Mishra in front, Brahmins were included and tickets were given on a large scale. 41 out of 86 candidates had won. BSP is the same one which had raised the slogan ‘Brahmin will blow the conch, elephant will grow’.
Dalit-BJP vote bank came in handy and BSP government was formed. Samajwadi Party formed the government in 2012 during the time of Akhilesh Yadav with the support of Brahmins. Samajwadi Party has also been organizing Brahmin conferences, unveiling the statues of Parshuram, efforts are also being made to fit Brahmins into the Muslim-Yadav equation. BJP leaders say that Akhilesh Yadav is continuously trying to fuel the Thakur-Brahmin dispute by including Brahmins in the PDA.
Comments are closed.