Uttar Pradesh Polls: More Brahmin leaders, BJP MLA join SP

Days after several high profile 'Brahmin' leaders, including an MLA each from the BJP and a BSP, mostly hailing from Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath's hometown of Gorakhpur, joined the Samajwadi Party (SP), some more influential 'Brahmin' leaders joined the SP on Monday in what was being perceived as a major political gain for the party ahead of the forthcoming assembly polls in the state.

BSP Lok Sabha member Ritesh Pandey's father Rakesh Pandey, an ex-MP, joined the SP in the presence of party supremo Akhilesh Yadav. Another former MLA Brijesh Mishra, also a Brahmin, joined the party along with his supporters.

BJP legislator from Baharaich district Madhuri Verma, a key face in the influential 'Kurmi' community, also joined the SP in a jolt to the saffron party ahead of the polls.

Rakesh Pandey, who had represented the Ambedkar Nagar seat in the previous Lok Sabha, was considered an important 'Brahmin' leader from the 'Poorvanchal' (eastern) region of UP. In 2014, his son replaced him as a BSP nominee after the former expressed his inability to contest the poll.

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Pandey's departure was being perceived as a huge setback to the BSP, which had been trying desperately to woo the Brahmin community. It came as a shot in the arm for the SP, which had opened up its doors for the Brahmin leaders in a bid to expand its support base in the community.

Barely a few days ago Pandit Hari Shankar Tewari, one of the tallest 'Brahmin' leaders in 'Poorvanchal' (eastern region) and a six term MLA in the state assembly from Chillupar seat in Gorakhpur, and his two sons, one of whom was a BSP MLA and another a former MP had joined the SP.

BJP lawmaker from Khalilabad assembly seat, which was in the Gorakhpur division, Digvijay Narayan Chaube, a Brahmin, had also joined the SP along with several other prominent Brahmin faces from the eastern region of the state.

The influx of so many senior Brahmin leaders into the SP was certain to trigger unease within the saffron party, which had launched frantic efforts to 'douse' the perceived anger among the electorally influential Brahmin community and bring them back into its fold.

The BJP has formed a 16-member committee headed by party's Rajya Sabha member Shiv Pratap Shukla to reach out to the community and apprise them about the various measures initiated by the centre and the state government for the welfare of the community.

BJP made Ajai Kumar Mishra, a Brahmin MP from Lakhimpur Kheri, a minister in the union cabinet and also made a key Brahmin Congress leader Jitin Prasada to cross over and made him a minister in Yogi Adityanath cabinet.

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