Days before first phase of polling, BJP faces 'kshatriya' trouble in UP

Lucknow: Stung by the public display of anger toward it by the electorally influential 'kshatriya' (Rajput) community, especially in the western Uttar Pradesh region, barely days before the first phase of polling on April 19, the BJP leadership has embarked upon a massive damage control exercise to placate the community leaders and also make sure that it does not spread to the central and eastern region of the state.

The 'kshatriya' community leaders, who had held a 'mahapanchayat' at Saharanpur a few days ago where the speakers had exhorted the members of the community to oppose the BJP nominees in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls, announced that they would organise similar 'mahapanchayats' in Meerut and Muzaffarnagar in the days to come.

The reports that the 'kshatriya' community leaders have been holding meetings with the community members in villages and asking them not to support the BJP have triggered a sense of 'unease' among the saffron party leaders in the state.

The community members are unhappy with the BJP over what they say is not giving nominations to the community in the LS polls. ''So far among the 62 candidates declared by the BJP, only eight are kshatriyas....the BJP is taking our support for granted,'' remarked a prominent community leader in Saharanpur 'mahapanchayat'.

They also said that only Sarvesh Singh, who hails from the Rajput community, has been given party nomination in the western UP region. ''There are no kshatriya candidates from BJP even on LS seats like Ghaziabad and Gautam Buddh Nagar where our numbers are between four to five lakh,'' the leader added.

The leaders were furious over the nomination of Pradeep Choudhary from Kairana LS seat, who hails from 'Gujjar' community. ''Pradeep Choudhary was among the BJP leaders who had insulted the kshatriya community when there was a controversy over whether Raja Mihir Bhoj was a kshatriya or Gujjar,'' he said.

In an apparent bid to douse the anger, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath will be addressing a meeting at Sardhana village and seek to placate the community. Incidentally a 'panchayat' of the community members was held at Sardhana, a part of Meerut LS seat, last week in which posters stating 'Kamal ka phool (BJP symbol)...Hamari bhool'' (it was a mistake to support the BJP) were displayed.

BJP leaders had been asked to contact the prominent leaders of the community and apprise them about what the party claimed was adequate representation to the 'kshatriya' community in the party organisation as well as in the cabinet.