The Hindu : New Delhi News : BSP eyeing voters from South

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BSP eyeing voters from South

Smriti Kak Ramachandran

Banking on its ‘social engineering’ formula which worked wonders for it in U.P.

Photo: V.V. Krishnan

Election flavour: Supporters of a ticket-aspirant protesting against Bahujan Samaj Party chief and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati at Jantar Mantar on Saturday after being denied a ticket for the forthcoming Delhi Assembly elections.

NEW DELHI: They are a sizeable population in some of the Capital’s key constituencies including New Delhi, but the South Indian communities, which have thus far been kept out of the race for tickets, might soon find a redeemer in the Bahujan Samaj Party.

Having adopted its much talked about “social engineering” formula for the forthcoming Delhi Assembly elections as well, the BSP is now mulling over the possibility of bringing in a South Indian representative to win over the voters.

Significant population

What has worked to its advantage is that neither the BJP nor the Congress so far has announced a contestant from any of these communities for the 70 Delhi Assembly seats up for grabs later this month.

“In areas like Sarojini Nagar, R.K. Puram, Mayur Vihar, Janakpuri and Dwarka where people from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh live in significant numbers, the BSP is considering the possibility of a candidate from any of these communities,” say party sources.

Pointing out that the Andhra Society alone has 6.5 lakh Andhraiites registered with it, sources say the BSP is keen to cash in on the votes from this 15 lakh to 20 lakh strong segment from down South.

“The BSP is banking on its social engineering formula which had proved extremely successful in Uttar Pradesh. It is posing itself as an alternative to what are considered national parties -- the Congress and the BJP,” the sources add. In the Karol Bagh segment, considered a BSP stronghold, the South Indian communities comprise about 10 per cent of the total vote bank. In Rajendra Nagar, they account for 5 per cent of the local population while in R.K. Puram and Vishwas Nagar it is 8 per cent and 12 per cent respectively.

Selection strategy

Party sources claim that the party, though “tight-lipped” about its election strategy, has already indicated that selection of candidates for the seats would not be bound by “caste alone”.

Stating that “there will also be candidates from non-reserved categories and the so-called upper castes will be well represented in terms of tickets,” a senior BSP leader said, “Thakurs, Muslims, Jats, Valmikis, Garhwalis, Brahmins, Jatavas, Tyagis, Gujjars, Aggarwals, Girhars and Punjabis would also be considered for tickets.”

Party workers are quick to assert that “the BJP and the Congress are in for a tough contest”.

“The BSP is a force to reckon with. The BJP and the Congress have not just admitted that they fear a huge dent in their vote bank, but are precariously placed in some key areas where the BSP is confident of routing them,” said a party functionary.

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