Around noon, the cavalcade of SUVs cut into Ikhtara village, which boasts a splendid view of the Lucknow-Agra Expressway. The two-hour delay did not deter the enthusiasm as the local people, mostly Thakurs, rushed to greet their guest, honouring him with garlands of flowers and ₹10 notes and wrapping a traditional turban around his head.
“I am fighting on a different equation. I was born and brought up here [Agra]. And I have worked here as an MP,” Raj Babbar told The Hindu , as he approached one of the verandahs. “They are asking me, how many votes do I have of my caste and community,” he said as he then addressed the villagers. “I said to them, listen ... they (waving at the people) are my caste, kin and creed,” said Mr. Babbar in Hindi in the local accent.
It was met with loud cheers and clapping.
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However, Fatehpur Sikri is witnessing a different battle this time, where the underdog Congress is relying primarily on the charisma and son-of-the-soil image of its Bollywood star-turned-politician Babbar. While the BJP has fielded a Jat, the BSP has a Brahmin.
The third key community in Fatehpur Sikri are the Thakurs. They dominate Ikhtara.
Jiten Kumar, the village pradhan’s son, is among those enamoured of Mr. Babbar — not the Bollywood star but the former Agra MP (1999 and 2004). “From the concrete road, drinking water tank and electricity connections, everything done here was during his period,” Mr. Kumar said.
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Mr. Babbar’s outreach among the Thakurs was bolstered after two popular former BSP MLAs from the community, Surajpal Singh and Dharampal Singh, recently defected to him. And unlike previous elections, there are no Thakur candidates in the fray.
But not all are impressed.
Netrapal Singh, a farmer, is firmly behind Prime Minister Narendra Modi and dismisses Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s credentials. He doesn’t care much for the BJP candidate, Raj Kumar Chahar, who has lost three consecutive Assembly elections and was once an aide of Mr. Babbar himself.
“Only Modi can take the country forward. Others talk of only Muslims and want to mortgage national interests,” Mr. Singh said.
The BSP is placed poorly this time after its former MP Seema Upadhyay, a popular Brahmin face, was denied ticket.
Except for the Jatav voters, there is little enthusiasm for her replacement, Bulandshahr MLA Bhagwan Sharma, alias Guddu Pandit, an outsider who does not enjoy a good image.
With the Brahmins alienated from the BSP, Mr. Babbar has been making inroads. Rajveer Lavaniya, a Brahmin who heads a potato farmers outfit, recently quit the SP to support Mr. Babbar.
Mr. Lavaniya said a panchayat of 10-12 farmer outfits extended support to Mr. Babbar after he assured them he would set up a potato processing unit, get them the right price and help farmer's children get free education.
The Bharatiya Kisan Union (Rashtrapati) is also backing Babbar. The Muslims too appear to be tactically supporting Mr. Babbar as he seems stronger than the BSP to defeat the BJP, said Irfan Salim of the Bharatiya Muslim Vikas Parishad.