Nagpur: With assembly elections fast approaching, all major parties in Wardha district have started targeting voters based on their caste, with the aim of tilting the results in their favour.
Wardha district, which was always a Congress bastion because of the influence of Mahatma Gandhi, has in recent years seen the rise of the BJP. In the last parliamentary election, BJP's two-time MP and wrestler-turned-politician Ramdas Tadas lost to NCP's (SP) Amar Kale, who was contesting the parliamentary election for the first time and joined the NCP (SP) from the Congress just a few days before the election.
The elections in Wardha were affected by the Teli-Kunbi caste matrix, but in this election, parties are also concentrating on other castes too. To overcome the loss in the parliamentary election, the BJP is now targeting voters of other castes too, such as OBCs, SCs, and STs.
Speaking to TOI, BJP office bearer Avinash Deo said that to overcome the parliamentary election defeat, they are carrying out house-to-house drives to connect with voters. "We are targeting OBCs, SCs, and STs voters on a micro level. Apart from this, we are also raising awareness at booth level and informing citizens about several govt schemes, including Ladki Bahin as well as the free electricity scheme for farmers," said Deo.
Wardha district has four assembly constituencies — Wardha City, Arvi, Hinganghat, and Deoli. While Wardha, Arvi, and Hinganghat are currently held by the BJP, the Deoli constituency is held by five-time Congress MLA and former minister of state Ranjit Kamble.
Congress office bearer Manoj Chandurkar also claimed that their booth representatives and minority cell leaders are targeting voters based on caste. "Primarily in Wardha, the Kunbi and Teli voters sway the elections. However, there are other caste voters such as SCs, STs, and Muslims, who also have a good voter base in the district, and we are targeting them as well," said Chandurkar.
Meanwhile, several candidates have also started campaigning. "The candidates are carrying out outreach programmes as well as protests with the aim of getting the upper hand," said political analysts.
The Wardha district is all set to witness major fights as the BJP, which currently holds three seats in the district out of four, is facing anti-incumbency, which led to the loss in the parliamentary elections.