E-Paper
Rise of new Dalit outfits a worry for BSP chief Mayawati
Rattled by the rise of several Dalit oufits led by young men, BSP chief Mayawati launched her nephew Aakash as party’s young Dalit face. Ironically, the BSP does not have a youth wing.
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati has started reorganising the party to counter a rash of fringe Dalit outfits who are actively wooing the community.
Outfits like the Bhim Army, Dalit Yuva Dal, Dalit Federation, Dalit Caravan, Ambedkar Army, Dalit Revolution and Dalit Rising have become a new worry for Mayawati whose party finished a poor third in the Uttar Pradesh assembly election earlier this year.
With her support base eroding, she changed her strategy last week by visiting Shabbirpur village in Saharanpur to meet the Dalits who have been victims of violence. It was after three years that she had made a road trip.
AK Mishra, a political observer, said, “After the BSP’s humiliating defeat in the assembly election and a rebellion by senior party leaders, there is complete disarray among Dalit voters who formed the party’s core support base.”
The BSP won only 19 seats in the 403-member state assembly. “And now Dalit youths are mulling over other options and looking for outfits that can make a mark in state politics. The rise of (Bhim Army founder) Chandrashekhar was the result of this stirring among the Dalits,” Mishra said.
Along with the rise of the new Dalit outfits, pressure had also mounted on Mayawati to put in place a second rung of leadership. She made her younger brother Anand Kumar the party’s national vice-president (second in command). And to woo the youth voters, she started promoting her nephew Aakash, who is in his early 20s, effectively ensuring that the leadership of the BSP would remain in the family.
She introduced Aakash at a meeting of party workers in Lucknow last month. He also accompanied her to Shabbirpur village in Saharanpur district on May 23 to meet the Dalits who were at the receiving end of violence by Thakurs.
The rise of the Bhim Army under young Dalit leader Chandrashekhar Azad Ravan upset Mayawati’s plan. She not only denied any association with Bhim Army but described its leadership as a product of the saffron brigade conspiracy to eat into her Dalit vote bank. Demanding action against the leaders of Bhim Army, she said police had failed to arrest them as they were protected by the BJP leadership.
To counter Chandrashekhar, she ensured that Aakash interacted with local Dalit youths during her Saharanpur visit.
A BSP leader said, “To wean Dalits away from the influence of the Bhim Army, Mayawati has directed the party leaders to organise cadre camps and meetings of bhai- chara committees. The aim is to tell Dalits not to fall in the trap of the opposition and to remain under the BSP umbrella for recapturing political power.”