Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) that has seen its fortune dwindle over the years is hoping to make a comeback in the bypolls scheduled on Nov 20 with special emphasis on two seats-- Katehari in Ambedkarnagar and Majhawan in Mirzapur-- which it considers as its stronghold.
The party won Katehari five times between 1993 and 2017 and Majhawan five times between 1991 and 2012, except for 1996.
Knowing that president Mayawati and national coordinator Akash Anand may not campaign in UP, state-level netas are focusing on doorstep meetings to woo voters.
"Our aim is to dispel the feeling among voters that any other party than BSP cares for them. How the SP govt undid every step that the BSP govt took to make it better for OBCs and uphold the legacy of Dalit icons is what we are reminding voters of," said BSP state president Vishwanath Pal.
After the BSP weakened, the netas who won Katehari and Majhawan seats for the party defected to either BJP or SP.
Lalji Verma, who last won the Katehari seat for BSP in 2017, contested on an SP ticket in 2022 and won. He is now SP MP from Ambedkarnagar. Now, the SP has fielded his wife, Shobhawati Verma, from Katehari in the bypolls.
Similarly, BJP's Katehari candidate, Dharamraj Nishad, is also a BSP turncoat. He was the minister in the Mayawati govt in 2007-12 and won the seat thrice for BSP.
Pal said: "We are telling voters how the defectors cheated Behenji. Now, the voters will not spare the parties these defectors went to."
In Majhawan, SP has fielded Jyoti Bind, daughter of Ramesh Chandra Bind, another BSP defector. "This exposes SP's PDA which actually stands for Pariwar Dal Alliance," said Pal.
BSP's Bhagwat Pal won Majhawan in 1991 and 1993 while Ramesh Chandra Bind won the seat thrice, in 2002, 2007 and 2012.
Considering that Majhawan has Dalits, OBCs and Brahman voters in decisive roles, BSP has fielded Deepak Tiwari. In Katehari, to corner Dalit and OBC votes, the party has fielded OBC leader Amit Verma. Verma contested the 2012 assembly election from Katehari as a Congress candidate.
It is the formidable combination of Dalit and OBC votes in Katehari and Majhawan that makes BSP pin hopes on its comeback in the bypolls.
Katehari has more than a lakh Dalit voters. Party leaders have held more than 250 village meetings to reach out to Dalits and OBCs.
In Majhawan, too, the party's focus has been on intensifying village and booth-level meetings.