If the recent BSP processions in Mathura and Agra are anything to go by, Mayawati still holds sway in the twin seats where the incumbent BJP has been a brute force ever since the Modi-Adityanath duo have been at the helm of the “double-engine sarkar”.
On the occasion of the 133rd birth anniversary of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar on April 14, at least five Dalit organisations took out mile-long rallies in Mathura-Vrindavan with tableaus on open trucks, three-wheelers and motorcycles. A similar number of processions were organised in Agra on the occasion.
The tableaus in Mathura had a man and a woman posing as Ambedkar and his wife, Ramabai, there was also a Buddhist monk and his disciples, Dalit saint-poet Ravidas and others. There were images of Dalit thinkers and Gautam Buddha in the tableaus in Agra, 58km east of Mathura.
Unlike other parties’ voters in Uttar Pradesh who have maintained a stoic silence this time on whom to vote for, participants at the BSP processions made no bones about their allegiance to the party, giving a clear hint that it would be unfair to write off Mayawati this early.
“These people will support the BSP candidates this election because Mathura and Agra have witnessed developments during Mayawati’s term (between 2007 and 2012). There is disillusionment among people here concerning the insensitivity of Hema Malini and S.P. Singh Baghel, the two-time BJP MPs from Mathura and Agra (respectively),” said Vivek Kumar, who enacted Ravidas in a Mathura rally.
Sant Ram and his wife Sashi, who played Ambedkar and Ramabai, said there is no hope other than the BSP in the current situation. “The BJP has ignored the poor and tried to reduce them to beggars,” he said.
Not only followers of Ambedkar, whom BSP president Mayawati considers her party’s “guiding force”, but also some priests of the revered Shri Rangnath Mandir in Vrindavan claimed off the record that they would vote for the party candidate.
“We had invited Hema Malini in 2014 and sent her to Parliament with due respect. We will try to send her back to Mumbai this time by voting for the BSP or whoever is in a position to defeat them,” said a priest, with other seers echoing him.
“To beat the BJP in its own game, Behenji has made a good strategy. Suresh Singh, the BSP candidate from Mathura, is a former Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) leader. Singh is also a Jat, the community which plays a decisive role in Mathura,” said another priest.
Suresh Singh said a major part of Mathura district was included in the Taj Trapezium Zone (TTZ) a few years ago. “Since then, all the industries here have shut down. But Mathura’s share in the income of Taj Mahal is zero. It is unfair that we have to suffer because of the mausoleum. We don’t get anything from its earnings. I aim to make a common panel to manage the twin districts.”
The TTZ was formed to protect the Taj Mahal from environmental pollution.
“The failure of the Narendra Modi government is a major reason behind voters swaying away from the BJP,” Singh said.
Political observers said Congress candidate Mukesh Dhangar has a strong influence in the urban areas of Mathura-Vrindava but the BSP has a better grip in Chhatta, Mant, Goverdhan and Baldev — the remaining four Assembly segments of the districts.
