Promising separate state for western UP, Mayawati attempts to stitch Jat-Muslim-Dalit coalition

Mayawati sought to drive home the message that her party had, this time, given tickets to members from all the castes and communities and that the BSP represented the 'sarva samaj' in the 'true sense'.

Lucknow: Apparently realising that the support of the electorally influential Jat and Muslim communities, especially in western Uttar Pradesh, could boost her party's electoral prospects, BSP supremo Mayawati on Sunday stressed the need for 'bhaichara' (brotherhood) between the two communities at her election rallies in Saharanpur and Muzaffarnagar.

Addressing the rallies, Mayawati also promised to work for the creation of a separate state comprising districts of the western region, a long standing demand of the local population.

Mayawati also sought to drive home the message that her party had, this time, given tickets to members from all the castes and communities and that the BSP represented the 'sarva samaj' in the 'true sense'.

"The communal riots in Muzaffarnagar in 2013 during the Samajwadi Party regime destroyed the bhaichara (brotherhood) between the Jat and Muslim communities.... There were no communal riots during my party's government in the state," Mayawati stated. Her party has nominated an OBC candidate, Daya Shankar Prapati, from the Muzaffarnagar Lok Sabha seat. Additionally, the BSP has fielded a Muslim candidate in Saharanpur.

During her address, the BSP supremo targeted the BJP, Samajwadi Party, and Congress, urging the people to support her party in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. "We will also strive towards the creation of a separate state comprising districts of the western region," she affirmed. This demand for a separate state has been longstanding, with the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) having previously supported it as well.

According to BSP leaders in the region, Mayawati has been strategically targeting the Jat, Muslim, and Dalit communities in the western region. "Dalits are already aligned with us....the Muslim community will support us if they perceive that our candidates have a strong chance of defeating the BJP.....a portion of the OBC population will also vote in our favour," stated a senior BSP leader. The leader expressed confidence that BSP candidates could secure victory even with limited support from the Jat community.

The BSP has fielded prominent Jat leader Choudhary Vijendra Singh, who was the national general secretary of the RLD, from Bijnore Lok Sabha seat.

The BSP believes that garnering support from the Jats and Muslims, combined with the assured backing of the Dalits, could be decisive in several constituencies in the western and central regions of the state. The polling for eight Lok Sabha seats in the western UP region is scheduled for the first phase on April 19.