Ability of leaders to transfer caste votes dented: Rajbhar

Om Prakash Rajbhar discusses the impact of caste dynamics on voting patterns in Uttar Pradesh elections.

The Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) president, Om Prakash Rajbhar, said on July 7 that the Lok Sabha poll outcome signifies a deeper shift in voting patterns in Uttar Pradesh, with caste groups competing hard for better representation. Caste and social groups voted for their own candidates, irrespective of party affiliation. He added that the ability of even Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) OBC leaders or those of other castes to shift votes of their social group was dented.

“Each caste group voted for their own candidate, irrespective of the party’s affiliation. The ability of leaders of all parties in U.P. even the BJP, hailing from a particular caste to shift votes of their social group has reduced considerably compared to the 2014 or 2017 assembly polls. As the Samajwadi Party (SP)-led INDIA alliance gave many tickets to Kurmi, Maurya, Kushwaha, and Shakya, the votes of these social groups shifted towards them in many seats. The shift was based on caste affiliations and was not towards the SP,” said Mr. Rajbhar, adding the Rajbhar community voted in large numbers for the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the 2024 polls. The SBSP is thought to have sizeable support among the Rajbhar OBC group in U.P.

He added that SP MPs hailing from the Kurmi community are aggressively reaching out to the community, which is leading to a pushback from ,Apna Dal (Soneylal), a Kurmi centric party chief and Union Minister Anupriya Patel. “The SP MPs from the Kurmi caste are trying to bring the social group into their fold while the Apna Dal is the major contender for caste votes, which is leading to a pushback,” said Mr. Rajbhar. Apna Dal leader Ms. Patel recently wrote a letter to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath alleging that reserved seats sanctioned for Other Backward Classes (OBCs), Scheduled Castes (SCs), and Scheduled Tribes (STs) become unreserved during the recruitment process. SP leaders have been aggressively alleging discrepancies in the allotment of reserved seats during recruitment drives.

11 candidates hailing from the Kurmi community were elected from U.P. in the 2024 polls. Kurmi is an OBC social group and the second largest group after the Yadav community. Nine candidates hailing from other non-Yadav OBC groups like Kushwahas, Rajbhars, Nishads, and Lodhis were also elected on INDIA alliance parties’ symbol.