In an attempt to woo the Kurmi community in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP on Monday entered into a pre-poll alliance with Apna Dal that will contest from two Lok Sabha seats — Pratapgarh and Mirzapur — under the alliance in the state. Each of these two seats have more than 1.5 lakh Patel votes.
"It (alliance) will strengthen BJP and Apna Dal as well," said BJP general secretary incharge of Uttar Pradesh Amit Shah after the announcement at party headquarters in the capital on Monday.
"Modi also comes from a backward caste. His leadership will change the fortune of the country," Apna Dal general secretary Anupriya Patel said after the announcement of the alliance. The sizeable presence of Patel community votes in two rural Assembly segments of Varanasi Lok Sabha seat from where BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi is contesting, appears to have led to the alliance.
The BJP, which is keen to revive its OBC support base in UP, has also tried to woo non-Yadav OBC communities like Kurmi and Lodh-Rajput backward communities in the state.
While the Apna Dal derives its support from Kurmi support base, the BJP has given tickets to six Lodh-Rajput candidates — Rajveer Singh (son of former UP CM Kalyan Singh), Uma Bharti, Sakshi Maharaj, Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti, Mukesh Rajput and Naipal Singh — to woo these two non-Yadav OBC communities in the state.
BJP sources in Varanasi said that Patels in these areas, who belong to the Kurmi community, have traditionally been the saffron party supporters. But in the late 1990s, they gradually swayed towards the Apna Dal, established by Anupriya’s father Sone Lal Patel.
The total Patel community votes in Varanasi Lok Sabha seat are pegged at nearly 2.5 lakh. Apart from Rohaniya and Sewapuri, where conservative estimates put their number at over a lakh each, there are a few pockets in the city area too. In sealing the alliance, the BJP also appears to have given due thought to the possible game-spoiler effect which Apna Dal may have had, if Anupriya contested from Varanasi.
In 2012, she had polled nearly 58,000 votes in.
Source: FinancialExpress.com
"It (alliance) will strengthen BJP and Apna Dal as well," said BJP general secretary incharge of Uttar Pradesh Amit Shah after the announcement at party headquarters in the capital on Monday.
"Modi also comes from a backward caste. His leadership will change the fortune of the country," Apna Dal general secretary Anupriya Patel said after the announcement of the alliance. The sizeable presence of Patel community votes in two rural Assembly segments of Varanasi Lok Sabha seat from where BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi is contesting, appears to have led to the alliance.
The BJP, which is keen to revive its OBC support base in UP, has also tried to woo non-Yadav OBC communities like Kurmi and Lodh-Rajput backward communities in the state.
While the Apna Dal derives its support from Kurmi support base, the BJP has given tickets to six Lodh-Rajput candidates — Rajveer Singh (son of former UP CM Kalyan Singh), Uma Bharti, Sakshi Maharaj, Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti, Mukesh Rajput and Naipal Singh — to woo these two non-Yadav OBC communities in the state.
BJP sources in Varanasi said that Patels in these areas, who belong to the Kurmi community, have traditionally been the saffron party supporters. But in the late 1990s, they gradually swayed towards the Apna Dal, established by Anupriya’s father Sone Lal Patel.
The total Patel community votes in Varanasi Lok Sabha seat are pegged at nearly 2.5 lakh. Apart from Rohaniya and Sewapuri, where conservative estimates put their number at over a lakh each, there are a few pockets in the city area too. In sealing the alliance, the BJP also appears to have given due thought to the possible game-spoiler effect which Apna Dal may have had, if Anupriya contested from Varanasi.
In 2012, she had polled nearly 58,000 votes in.
Source: FinancialExpress.com
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