Lucknow: The Samajwadi Get together (SP) has its sights set on the Gurjar neighborhood in western Uttar Pradesh, significantly alongside the Yamuna belt. The concept is to offset Bharatiya Janata Get together’s (BJP) rising affect amongst Jats, particularly after its alliance with the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) led by Jayant Chaudhary, who’s a minister in PM Modi’s cupboard.

As a part of this outreach, Samajwadi Get together chief and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav is scheduled to handle a ‘Gurjar Jagrukta’ rally in Higher Noida, in Gautam Buddha Nagar district within the coming days. The rally shall be held after a collection of ‘Gurjar chaupals’ organised in Gurjar-dominated meeting constituencies of western UP.

Gurjars make up an estimated 3.5 p.c of Uttar Pradesh’s whole inhabitants. With minimal Yadav presence within the Yamuna belt, stretching from Saharanpur to Agra, the SP is banking on the Gurjar-Muslim mixture to strengthen its prospects within the 2017 meeting polls.

Chatting with ThePrint, SP spokesperson and Gurjar chief Raj Kumar Bhati mentioned, “Now we have performed an inside survey which reveals Gurjar voters are current in 132 meeting seats. Of those, 76 seats have greater than 10,000 Gurjar voters, whereas 31 seats have over 25,000. In actual fact, in 21 constituencies, a Gurjar candidate has received a minimum of as soon as.”

He added, “Our effort is to unite the neighborhood in favour of the Samajwadi Get together, as our chief has constantly raised Gurjar points each on social media and in public rallies.”

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Akhilesh’s outreach

At a current public assembly with Gurjar neighborhood leaders, Akhilesh Yadav launched Raj Kumar Bhati because the occasion’s handiest spokesperson, a transfer SP insiders see as a transparent sign to the neighborhood. The assembly was convened on the occasion’s Delhi camp workplace, somewhat than in Lucknow, to make it simpler for employees from throughout western UP to attend.

One other senior Gurjar face within the occasion, Mukhiya Gurjar, who additionally heads Pathik Sena, introduced that the SP has launched ‘Gurjar chaupals’ after a method assembly with Akhilesh on the occasion’s Delhi camp workplace. “We’re holding constituency-wise Gurjar chaupals to inform our people who the SP is the one occasion standing for OBCs. The present BJP regime is samantvadi (feudalistic) and a supporter of the ‘higher caste’ solely.”

He added, “We’re additionally highlighting the problem of Samrat Mihir Bhoj. Whereas Rajputs declare him as their ancestor, the reality is, he was a Gujrar. The Rajputs are in energy and attempting to applicable his legacy, however SP has made it clear that Mihir Bhoj belonged to our neighborhood. Akhilesh Yadav himself prolonged greetings on Mihir Bhoj’s delivery anniversary.”

The Mihir Bhoj controversy dates again to 2021, when CM Yogi Adityanath unveiled a statue of the ruler in Dadri, sparking a dispute between Gurjars and Rajputs, each of whom declare Mihir Bhoj as theirs.

Political analyst Shilp Shikha Singh, assistant professor at Lucknow’s Giri Institute of Improvement Research, noticed that in western UP, caste combos of Dalits, Muslims, Jats, and Gurjars play a decisive function.

“If Gurjars and Dalits again the SP, it may successfully counter the BJP within the area. The occasion’s Gurjar outreach is a part of its bigger non-Yadav OBC technique, which helped them even within the 2024 elections regardless of Jayant Chaudhary siding with the NDA,” she mentioned.

Based on SP sources, the management is attempting to handle the Jat-Gurjar rivalry, as most Jats are actually seen backing the BJP. “To fill the hole left by the absence of Yadav voters within the area, the occasion is specializing in constructing a Gurjar-Muslim alliance,” mentioned one insider.

Gurjars and lack of illustration

The Gurjar neighborhood has additionally raised considerations about lack of illustration in Yogi Adityanath’s cupboard, the place no Gurjar holds a ministerial submit. Somendra Tomar is the one minister from the Gurjar neighborhood with the rank of MoS (minister of state).

A BJP chief from Uttar Pradesh, talking on situation of anonymity, instructed ThePrint, “The shortage of Gurjar illustration within the authorities is certainly a serious situation, as there is just one minister of state. On a lighter notice, we typically joke that he handles the ability division with none actual energy.”

At present, the BJP has six Gurjar MLAs, whereas the SP has only one. With Jayant Chaudhary’s entry into the NDA consolidating Jat votes for the BJP, the query of Gurjar votes and the Mihir Bhoj dispute have added recent challenges for the ruling occasion.

SP chief Mukhiya Gurjar added, “We expect a minimum of 20 tickets this time from the occasion. Final time, 11 got and certainly one of them received.”

(Edited by Viny Mishra)

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