Amid the chants of “Saari Party Dekh Li, Ab Ki Baar Ketli [We have tested all parties, now it is teapot’s turn]” and drumbeats, a crowd of men holding afloat huge aluminium teapots tied to shafts, make their way through narrow, mud lanes into the residential colony behind the Haldaur market in the Nagina Lok Sabha constituency of Uttar Pradesh. At the head of the crowd is Chandrashekhar Azad, national president of the Azad Samaj Party (Kanshiram), a four-year-old political outfit, that is fighting its first Lok Sabha election.
Ketli or teapot is their election symbol. With polling just 10 days away, the campaign fever is raising. The Hindu met Mr. Azad on Saturday as he went door-to-door, asking for votes. Just an hour earlier, BSP leader and Mayawati’s heir apparent Akash Anand, in his debut campaign speech, addressed a modest crowd just 30 km away. Mr. Anand does not name Mr. Azad but warns the crowd not to be “misled” by the “messiah” and not to fall for his rescue act. The reference is not lost on them.
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Supporter of Azad Samaj Party (ASP) (Kanshi Ram), holding party’s symbol Kettle during door to door campaigning for the upcoming general elections at Nagina Lok Sabha constituency, Bijnor district in Western Uttar Pradesh on April 6, 2024. | Photo Credit: SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR
The two frames capture the dilemma of the voters of Nagina.
The constituency, that was formed in 2008 after the last round of delimitation, has elected SP, BJP and BSP candidates in the general elections held since. The only time a BJP candidate won here was in 2014 — when both the BSP and the SP polled nearly equal amount of votes. In 2019, when the two Uttar Pradesh regional parties joined hands, the BSP, which got the seat, landed an easy victory. The majority of electorate here comprise Muslims and Dalits — who now find their loyalties torn between three candidates — SP’s Manoj Kumar, BSP’s Surender Pal Singh and Mr. Azad — and this gives the BJP an edge.
Ready for long haul
The Azad Samaj Party members concede that the three-way divide is not helpful. A close aide of Mr. Azad says the party is prepared for the long haul of “sangarsh” or “struggle”.
Unencumbered by realism of his pragmatic colleagues, Mr. Azad talks about “nayi rajniti ka uday [rise of new politics]“ and “Kanshi Ram ji Ke Sapne [Kanshi Ram’s dreams]” as he stops for sound bites. “We will get 70% votes here,” he declares. The crowd laps up his declarations with cheers and slogans. He goes from house-to-house, extending his hand, posing for pictures with women and children, bending down to touch the feet of the elderly, asking for their vote.
Azad Samaj Party (ASP) (Kanshi Ram) candidate and Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar Azad shake hands with voter during door to door campaigning for the upcoming general elections at Nagina Lok Sabha constituency, Bijnor district in Western Uttar Pradesh on April 6, 2024. | Photo Credit: SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR
His team members lament had the Samajwadi Party agreed to leave the seat for him, he would have easily walked away with victory. His talks with the SP failed, when Jayant Chaudhary, who was advocating for a berth for him, joined hands with the BJP. “On one end they claim this is the last election and that the BJP will amend the Constitution beyond recognition. Yet, they give in to their insecurities,” Mr. Azad said. But then as an afterthought, he shrugs and adds, “In democracy, no one gives way to you, you have to carve your own path.”
With his advocate Mr. Chaudhary now with the BJP, Mr. Azad is also battling the charge that he too has covert support from the saffron party since he was granted Y-category security by the State. He argues against the narrative, claiming that he alone has faced the bullets. And he brings in his jail term to prove his anti-BJP credentials. He is equally dismissive of criticism by Mr. Anand. Contrasting his humble background of being a school headmaster’s son with Mr. Anand’s privileged birth, Mr. Azad said, “He [Mr. Anand] was born with a silver spoon, he is yet to learn a lot from me.”
Mr. Azad was seen by many as the poster boy of Dalit politics, who, they hope, will fill the vacuum left behind by the BSP, whose presence in the Assembly and Parliament has been depleting. But standing alone, Mr. Azad has little chance to fulfil the destiny that many predict for him, at least in this election.
