BY – Raza Hasnain Naqvi

Uttar Pradesh elections are going to be held by Feb-March 2022 and the expected political fight to attract the Brahman community is gaining ground in UP. Each political party is putting its best face forward to lure the Brahman voter to its cause as this voter has a tendency to favour a strong emerging party before polls.

According to the dictionary, the word ‘Brahman’ has two major definitions. One, “a member of the highest Hindu caste”; second, “the ultimate reality underlying all phenomena”. The first definition is all about the superiority of being from the ‘Brahman’ caste as expressed and understood in the hierarchy of the Hindu community. The second definition is about a metaphysical philosophical concept of ‘Brahman’ which means a single strand of undefinable unity that binds together all the diversity in the universe.

When we talk about the ‘Brahman’ in terms of elections, then it is only the non-philosophical first definition that becomes valuable. What matters more is where will the loyalty and alliance of the Brahman Samaj tilt as UP assembly elections come nearer to seal the fate of political parties.

General Perception About Brahman Community

What is generally understood by political strategists and policymakers in political parties is that the Brahman community understands politics and the concept of self-preservation. The Brahman voter is wise in a political sense and understands the impact he can have on an election. He prefers to play it safe rather than sorry by deciding to vote in large numbers in favour of any political outfit that he feels has a strong chance of winning the election.

Brahman voters are tagged as members of the ‘prabuddh varg’ or the enlightened intellectual class by political thinkers. Their vote is much sought after by keen political parties out to collect maximum points for themselves in the political boxing ring. The political undertone is: Ignore the Brahman Samaj at your own peril.

For the past few years, the Brahman Samaj is generally considered closer to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Brahmans may even be considered as the core voter of the BJP now. But does this mean that the BJP is taking its core voter for granted? Some would say ‘yes’ as there are rumblings in the Brahman Samaj over not being given due importance and ‘sammaan’ by the party. The next 150 days before the UP Assembly elections in 2022 and the final result will confirm how the BJP handled its core voter base and its perceived problems.

See also: Sketched thoughts- Brahman

Uttar Pradesh and the Brahman Factor

The Brahman community has a vote share between 10-14% in Uttar Pradesh. After Jatavs and Yadavs, the Brahman vote is considered impactful as they help parties gain a voting lead. They are influential in the Awadh region and eastern UP, but in general, their voice has a much bigger ‘say and sway’ in society. Playing the Brahman card during the game of elections does get a political advantage.

Out of 21 chief ministers so far in UP, there have been six Brahman CMs. They are Pandit Govind Vallabh Pant, Sucheta Kriplani, Kamlapati Tripathi, Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna, Shripati Mishra and Narayan Dutt Tiwari. The last Brahman chief minister in UP was ND Tiwari in 1989, which means it has been more than 30 years since the state has had a Brahman CM.

Out of the 403 assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh, the Brahman voter has an influence on 90 seats, while in 45 seats their vote share is more than 25%. The Brahman majority seats in UP include Bhadohi, Jaunpur, Mirzapur, Prayagraj, Dr Ambedkar Nagar, Gonda, Balrampur, Unnao, Shahjahanpur, Sitapur, Kanpur, Sultanpur and Shrawasti. In terms of approximate community-wise breakup in UP, Brahmans comprise 13%, Muslims are 19% and Yadavs are 12%.

Interestingly in July 2021, the Brahman community got very good visibility on social media thanks to cricket player Suresh Raina. Raina was commentating in Tamil Nadu Premier League and he was asked by a fellow presenter how he adopted the South Indian culture and his Chennai link. Raina replied that “I am Brahman” and he had been playing since 2004 in Chennai and that he loved the South Indian culture. This remark created a prominent hashtag ripple on social media and Raina was criticised for making a ‘casteist’ comment. Many didn’t like that he had equated the Brahman identity with the culture of Tamil Nadu and Chennai.

BJP & Brahman Bonding in UP

The BJP won 325 seats in the 2017 UP assembly elections out of 403 where the Brahman voter played a major role. But today in 2021, the party is not as confident of Brahman Samaj support. Under the leadership of BJP leader Jitin Prasada who defected from Congress, the party is giving support to his Brahman Chetna Yatras. The party will also be organising conferences in all 403 seats that will see many promises being made to the Brahman community. In 2020, Prasada, when he was in Congress, had written to the CM to restore the Parshuram Jayanti holiday which had been de-notified in 2017 by the Yogi government. Today, Parshuram Jayanti finds itself in the Restricted Holiday list of the UP government.

Yet, there are also voices asking on both sides, “is there any other option besides the party in power in UP?” Some sections of the Brahman Samaj have expressed that they will depend on their intelligence only, rather than promises in sammelans and any kind of pralobhan. They say earnestly that they are the prabuddh varg and everyone’s wellwisher and shubhchintak. With this in mind, they have remarked that though BJP has not done much for their community, Brahmans will support and vote for BJP in desh hit for the welfare of the country.

Though there have been allegations that despite supporting BJP, Brahmans have been neglected and not been given due ‘sammaan’ in political representation, yet ever since the Ram Temple movement the Brahman Samaj has continued to put its faith in the party. Currently, there are 11 Brahman ministers in the Modi government, while in Jawaharlal Nehru’s first Central government, there were 7 Brahman ministers.

The UP assembly has 58 Brahman MLAs of BJP and eight ministers in the government. In terms of percentage, the Brahman support for BJP in UP has been — Assembly polls 2007 (40%), Assembly polls 2012 (38%), Assembly polls 2017 (80%), Lok Sabha polls 2014 (72%) , Lok Sabha polls 2019 (82%).

The BJP is keen to send out a message to its Brahman voter that it cares for his welfare. In 2020 the party’s Sultanpur MLA from Lambhua seat Deomani Dwivedi sought a reply from UP Home Minister on how many Brahmans have been murdered in UP; how many such murderers were caught; how many were given punishment; what is the government’s security policy for Brahmans and will Brahmans get priority in getting arms licence. Incidentally, he is the same MLA who wrote a letter to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in August 2021 requesting him to change the name of Sultanpur to Kushbhawanpur as the word ‘Sultan’ is a reminder of slavery. A BJP MLC Umesh Dwivedi has asked the government for insurance and mediclaim policy for poor Brahmans, among other welfare measures.

Read also: B’desh govt urged not to ‘reform’ Hindu laws

BSP Strategy for Brahman Support

After the UP assembly elections of 2017, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) found itself with only 19 seats and a vote share of 22%, while Samajwadi Party (SP) and its allies took home 54 seats. This was bitter news for a party that had done wonders 10 years back in 2007 assembly elections bagging 30% votes with its hit formula termed ‘social engineering’ that was about Dalit-Brahman unity. BSP had then formed the government that had 41 Brahman MLAs.

The party’s top slogan in 2007 was ‘Brahman shankh bajayega, haathi chalta jayega’. This is what the four-time chief minister and National President of BSP Mayawati hopes to repeat again in 2022 UP assembly elections. In her first public appearance a few days back in September 2021 after more than two years, she addressed the Brahman Samaj. She promised suraksha, sammaan, tarakki (security, honour, progress) to Brahmans if her government came to power.

Mayawati or Behenji as she is popularly known also conveyed a strict message in her speech that all government officials who had harassed Brahmans would be investigated and FIRs lodged against the innocent would be taken back. She told her party workers to connect with 1000 Brahmans in each assembly area. She is also focusing on keeping her core votebank of Jatav Dalit community satisfied with BSP.

Since 2012, the BSP vote share in UP has come down sharply, so Behenji has deputed her party MP and General Secretary Satish Chandra Mishra to establish a strong link again with the Brahman Samaj. Mishra is communicating with Brahmins in Prabuddh Varg Sammelans and conferences, while his wife Kalpana Mishra is engaging with women Brahman voters.

However, there are sections of the Sant Samaj who have reacted critically to BSP’s Brahman outreach efforts. They have alleged that the BSP government had harassed Brahmans and now Brahmans know where they have to stay and where not to go. They have also expressed anger in the sentiments that were conveyed in earlier BSP slogans like ‘Tilak, Tarazu aur Talwar…’ and ‘Mile Mulayam Kashiram, hawa mein ud gaye Jai Shri Ram’.

Irrespective of this, Behenji is now taking up the cause of 17-year-old Khushi Dubey, wife of Abhay Dubey, cousin of slain gangster Vikas Dubey in the Bikru massacre case of July 2020. Abhay was killed in a police encounter and Khushi who had married Abhay just three days back before the Bikru incident was arrested by the UP police on charges of being a gang member. She was sent to a juvenile centre in Barabanki where she remains without getting any bail. Mayawati is attempting to secure bail for Khushi Dubey a Brahman woman.

In the UP assembly election of 2007, BSP gave 88 party tickets to Brahman candidates and 41 of those candidates emerged winners. In the 2012 Vidhan Sabha polls, 74 were given tickets and 10 won. The most disappointing result for BSP was in the 2017 assembly polls where 66 Brahman candidates were supported, but only 3 Brahman candidates won.

Another strategy that the BSP is adopting is the one called ‘soft Hindutva’ where its Brahman face SC Mishra is seen taking part in Saryu aarti, making visits to Hanumangarhi and even having a darshan of Ram Lala in Ram Janmbhoomi Ayodhya. An announcement has also been made by Mayawati that a big statue will be constructed of Lord Parshuram who is revered by the Brahman community.

SP Blueprint to Attract Brahman Voter

The 2012 UP assembly elections brought the Samajwadi Party to power in the state. 21 of their MLAs who had won elections at the time were Brahmans. The 2017 assembly polls resulted in 54 seats for Samajwadi Party and its allies. The party lost the election and did some brainstorming. As part of their updated 2022 election strategy blueprint, they are focussing again on the astute Brahman voter.

Former UP Cabinet minister & SP National Secretary Abhishek Mishra is involved in organising Samajwadi Buddhijeevi Sammelans to attract the Brahman votebank. The party says that what Brahmans require most is employment today and they will provide this once their party comes to power after the assembly election 2022. They have a roadmap for this and a booklet is also ready.

Mishra is also conveying to the Brahman Samaj that Parshuram temples with Shiv ji statue will be constructed in every district of UP. Parshuram Temples are ready in Balrampur, Baliya, Meerut, Jalaun and Urai. More temples are being constructed in Varanasi and Auraiyya, while a temple will be constructed in Lucknow also. There will also be the installation of a 108 feet Bronze statue of Lord Parshuram. SP is of the opinion that such steps will encourage Parshuram Teerth and Brahman voters will be pleased.

Apparently, parties including SP are doing their best to get the Brahman voter to take them seriously in the 2022 election by playing the Hindutva card too. So they are on the same political track on which is written: “BJP has Ram, everyone else Parshuram”.

Congress Roadmap to Reassure Brahmans

General Secretary of the Congress Party and incharge of Eastern Uttar Pradesh Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is leading the party in UP assembly elections 2022. Questions still remain whether she will contest as a party candidate in the election and also whether she will then become the CM face of the party.

As to efforts by Congress to assure Brahmans that the party cares for them, the latest incident of September 6, 2021 seems to mean business. The incident involves the father of Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel. Chief Minister Baghel got his father Nand Kumar Baghel arrested in capital Raipur on the day for making alleged disparaging statements against the Brahman community. Baghel said that in his Congress-led government nobody was above the law. Among other things, the chief minister’s father had allegedly called Brahmans ‘foreigners’ who should be sent out of India.

There is also the remark by Congress leader Aradhana Mishra that Congress is the only party that has given an important political power to Brahmans and made six Brahman chief ministers in UP. Her question is will any other party declare a Brahman as a candidate for chief ministership?

Importantly, ever since the entry of Priyanka Gandhi in UP politics, the Brahman community in eastern UP especially has become more vocal in expressing disapproval of BJP government policies. Steps like the Ganga Yatra that Priyanka undertook in a boat from Prayagraj to Varanasi and met people in villages seems to have struck a chord. Till the early 1990s, Brahmins were considered as the traditional voters of Congress, but since then the aggressive Hinduism path taken by the BJP and the Ram Temple movement led many Brahman voters to leave Congress and join hands with the BJP.

There is the considered opinion among political analysts that if Congress gives more tickets to Brahman candidates then any revival that Priyanka can bring in Brahman Samaj and the Congress cadre will lead to positive election results in 2022.

Read also: Senior UP Congress leader quits post

AAP Recipe to Cater to Brahman Taste

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is looking to create a mark in other states, besides Delhi now. They have always highlighted one thing about their entry into politics: Ham rajneeti karne nahi, rajneeti badalne aaye hain.

As far as their political agenda is concerned, they are at pains to explain that they only believe in highlighting the daily problems of the common man, the aam aadmi and finding solutions. Call it bijli-paani-sadak-suraksha politics, they have stayed their course.

But deciding to contest alone on all 403 seats of Uttar Pradesh assembly elections means that AAP now sees that the ground of UP has a colour and shade that is different from Delhi grounds that they are used to. They have stuck to their common man agenda in UP, but they too have realised the importance of the Brahman Samaj now. 

AAP MP and UP incharge Sanjay Singh has recently announced that the party will be organising Chanakya Vichar Sammelan to give due priority to problems being faced by the Brahman Samaj. The first such sammelan will be organised in Lucknow on October 3, 2021. More such sammelans will be organised in other big districts like Varanasi, Prayagraj, Meerut, Ghaziabad, Kanpur, Gorakhpur and Agra. Ex-President of the PCS Sangh Harishanker Pandey has been designated as the Adhyaksh of the Prabuddh Prakoshth that will be active in Brahman outreach initiatives.

Sanjay Singh has made allegations that there have been false police encounters of many Brahmans in UP and that Khushi Dubey, a Brahman woman is not being given bail and is being harassed by the UP police by being tagged as a gang member of the slain gangster Vikas Dubey’s gang. He is explaining to the Brahman community that if any Brahman faces atyachaar then each karyakarta of AAP will stand with them in full support.