State scan: Tulsidas configured in Uttar Pradesh's caste strategy

Maverick politician Swami Prasad Maurya, who is being criticised for his comments on the Hindu religious text Ramcharitmanas, was recently elevated as national general secretary of the Samajwadi Party (SP).
 

Maurya had observed that certain verses in it contained objectionable language about Dalits and women.
 

With police cases lodged against him after his utterances, Maurya has been criticised not only by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) but also by some of his party colleagues.
 

Although SP supremo Akhilesh Yadav was expected to rein in Maurya over his verbal diatribe to avert any potential political damage to the party, the reward of the plum post instead confirmed his endorsement of the alleged misdemeanour.
 

While pre-poll permutations by the SP under Yadav after 2017 have come a cropper in big elections, his party is now looking to bet on the vote of the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Dalits ahead of coming elections, including the urban local bodies polls this year as well as the Lok Sabha contest in 2024.
 

In UP, which sends the highest number of members to the Lok Sabha, the OBCs have been warming up to the BJP since 2014. This tectonic shift has eaten into the traditional vote bank of the SP and Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the self-appointed champions of the backwards and Dalits, respectively.
 

The SP’s pre-poll alliance with the Congress and the BSP in the 2017 Assembly and 2019 Lok Sabha elections, respectively, was a reason for its failure.
 

The party also failed to dislodge the BJP government in the state polls in 2022 despite a spirited campaign.
 

In this mix of narratives, the SP is positioning itself as the voice of the OBCs and Dalits, which, respectively, constitute nearly 

40 and 21 per cent of the population in UP. The OBCs, which are politically assertive, have been aligning with the BJP after Narendra Modi became the BJP mascot and later Prime Minister. After winning over the non-Yadav OBCs, the BJP has been actively wooing the Yadav community, much to the SP’s chagrin.
 

In this regard, the nomination of Bhojpuri actor Dinesh Lal Yadav alias Nirahua from the Azamgarh Lok Sabha constituency and his subsequent victory in the 2022 Lok Sabha by-poll stands as testimony to the agenda of the BJP.
 

Espousing an aggressive pro-backward and Dalit stance synchronising with the Maurya controversy, the SP has thrown down the gauntlet with Akhilesh upping the ante on the burning topic.
 

However, Laljee Nirmal, president of the Ambedkar Mahasabha and UP Scheduled Caste Finance and Development Corporation chairperson, has decried the SP for trying to create a rift in society.
 

He said the previous SP and BSP governments had failed to uplift the downtrodden, and were interested in stoking controversies for political mileage.
 

“I think the SP will lose politically too because people can see through its nefarious designs to sow seeds of discord in society. Under the SP regime, Dalits were at the receiving end in the state,” Nirmal told Business Standard.
 

Meanwhile, veteran SP leader Shivpal Singh Yadav, who is the younger brother of the late SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, termed Maurya’s utterances his personal opinion, saying they were not in accord with the party line.
 

Nonetheless, a nonchalant SP remains unfazed over the likely fallout of its political fortunes. SP Spokesperson Juhie Singh noted Maurya was a veteran leader and wielded considerable influence in his community and the state.
 

“The party has reconstituted its national executive and appointed leaders, including Maurya, suitable for such posts. His elevation will benefit the party because of his experience. The party has always stood for the rights of the Dalits and the OBCs. That is why Akhilesh Yadav is insisting on a caste census to ensure representation to communities,” she said.
 

Even though the SP is harping on the issue for political and electoral gains, political pundits are sceptical about the prospects of the party benefiting in the long run.
 

Political commentator Pramod Goswami is of the view that Maurya’s comments, coupled with the incident of desecration of the Ramcharitmanas by members of a backward organisation, were detrimental to social harmony.
 

“The devaluation of political ethics and propriety is a matter of great concern. I also do not foresee any significant political gain for the SP following the raging controversy. Even if the party does manage to attract a few votes, it would still not be in a position to challenge the electoral heft of the BJP unless it offers a substantive and pro-development plank to the electorate,” he said.
 

Meanwhile, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath criticised the SP for allegedly trying to sabotage his development agenda.