Mulayam bid to woo Thakurs

By Our Special Correspondent

LUCKNOW, AUG. 25. Caste considerations seem to have guided political parties revamping their organisations in Uttar Pradesh with the State Assembly elections only about a year away. While the Bharatiya Janata Party has selected a Brahmin, Mr. Kalraj Mishra, as its State unit president, the Samajwadi Party on Thursday announced a list of its State executive members, indicating its intention to give more representation to upper castes.

The BJP discarded the ``social engineering'' formula propounded by its general secretary, Mr. K. N. Govindacharya,if only to send a message to its traditional support base that it had no intention to underrate the importance of upper castes. The SP, considered a political association of Yadavas and Muslims, has made a strong bid to reject the stigma in its new executive announced by the State SP president, Mr. Ram Saran Das.

In the 51-member committee there are seven Thakurs and seven Muslims. The representation to Thakurs is significant as their ratio in the State's population is merely two-thirds of the minority community. The SP has also nominated four Brahmins and two Kayasthas in its executive. A majority of the members belong to the backward classes and scheduled castes but the increased representation to upper castes certainly indicates a shift in the perceptions of Mr. Mulayam Singh Yadav.

The recent developments in the BJP when several leaders joined hands to spoil the chances of the Union Minister for Water and Surface Transport, Mr. Rajnath Singh, who was trying to replace Mr. Ram Prakash Gupta as the UP Chief Minister, have come as a great disappointment to the Thakur community. Some of them protested against the BJP giving a shabby deal to their leader.

Mr. Mulayam Singh has now attempted to present a strong pro- Thakur image for himself through the constitution of his UP Executive. And his attempts to exploit the sentiments of the community may not go waste.

Like the BJP, the Samajwadi Party is aware of its primary strength and while giving representations, the interest of backwards has been kept in tact.

Mr. Kalraj Mishra has still not announced his new executive. He has promised to form a balanced executive. The step taken by the Samajwadi Party may now give him some guidance.

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Section  : Other States
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