How BJP’s caste math for 8 UP Rajya Sabha seats counters SP’s PDA ahead of assembly polls
With eight candidates the BJP has sought to combine representation across social groups while also bringing in new faces for the Rajya Sabha election.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has fielded eight candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha election in Uttar Pradesh, with the line-up reflecting a mix of OBC, Dalit and upper-caste representation. The party dropped all sitting MPs including Union Ministers Hardeep Singh Puri and BL Verma. The new list includes two Brahmin leaders, two Dalit candidates and three leaders from OBC communities. The party has also given a ticket to a Kshatriya leader, underlining the social balance behind its selection. Two new Brahmin facesThe BJP has nominated Gopikrishna Pandey and Radhakant Ojha, both from the Brahmin community, for the Upper House. Their inclusion comes against the backdrop of reports of discontent among sections of the Brahmin community.
The two candidates are among the prominent new faces in the BJP’s Uttar Pradesh Rajya Sabha line-up. Three OBC candidatesThe party has also given representation to three OBC leaders. They are Uttar Pradesh BJP organisation general secretary Dharampal Singh, Prakash Pal and Shruti Gangwar. Dharampal Singh belongs to the Lodhi community and is currently an MLA.Dharampal Singh is also a minister in the Uttar Pradesh government, holding the Animal Husbandry and Dairy Development portfolio.
He represents the Aonla Assembly constituency in Bareilly. Also Read: All sitting MPs dropped including Hardeep Singh Puri, BJP announces fresh faces for 8 UP Rajya Sabha seatsTwo Dalit candidatesThe list includes two Dalit leaders, Priyanka Singh Rawat and Vidyasagar Sonkar. The BJP has also included two women among its eight nominees, with Priyanka Singh Rawat being one of them. The selection gives the party five candidates from OBC and Dalit communities combined, while the remaining nominees include leaders from Brahmin and Kshatriya communities. Is it BJP’s PDS counter to SP’s PDAThe social composition of the list has also acquired political significance in Uttar Pradesh. The Samajwadi Party has traditionally promoted its PDA formula; Pichhda, Dalit and Alpsankhyak, or backward classes, Dalits and minorities.
The BJP’s latest line-up appears aimed at presenting a different social coalition, centred on Pichhda, Dalit and Savarna backward classes, Dalits and upper castes. The BJP has also nominated Ram Pratap Singh Chauhan, a Kshatriya leader who is considered part of the upper-caste representation in the list. Chauhan is the Uttar Pradesh BJP’s state general secretary and in-charge of the party’s western region. With eight candidates in the fray, the BJP has sought to combine representation across social groups while also bringing in new faces for the Rajya Sabha election.