The Bhartiya Janata Party in Uttar Pradesh will now hit the Mayawati government where it hurts the most, at her dalit vote base.
The BJP, according to sources, is all set to recall its dalit agenda and work at expanding its base among dalits.
The party will focus on the reserved constituencies in the state.
T
o begin with, the party high command has asked its state leaders to celebrate the birth anniversaries of dalit icons with fanfare and increase their interaction with dalits at all levels.
“Whether it is Valmiki Jayanti or Kabir Jayanti or Ravidas Jayanti or Ambedkar Jayanti, the party will hold functions to commemorate the events and these will be held at the state as well as district level. The idea is to dispel the myth that the BJP is a party for upper caste Hindus. This is a party for all those who believe in Hindutva and dalits are members of the Hindu family. This point we want to drive home,” said a senior BJP leader.
The party is also planning to organise a series of “samrasta bhoj” (community feast) in villages in 2011 to increase the level of harmony between party cadres and dalits.
The BJP has organised similar feasts on earlier occasions. This time, the feasts are likely to begin from February and will continue through the year.
“Senior leaders of the party will attend these feasts where they will also get a chance to hold discussions with dalits in the rural interiors and understand their problems, at the social, political and economic levels,” the party leader said.
Besides, the BJP is also preparing to claim credit for restoring dalit pilgrim sites across the country.
“Ms Mayawati has built some memorials for dalit icons and is shouting about her work from rooftops. The BJP, on the other hand, has quietly restored the dalit pilgrim sites in various places in the country but no one is talking about it. Now we will also publicise our work in a big way. Dr Ambedkar’s birthplace in Mhow in Madhya Pradesh, the place in Nagpur where he embraced Buddhism, his residence on Alipur road in Delhi and Chowpatty in Mumbai where he was cremated — all four places were restored by the BJP when it was in power in these states,” he leader added.
Apart from this, the BJP is asking its party cadres to compile full information about atrocities on dalits at district levels.
This information will be later published in the form of a booklet that will be used to expose the pro-dalit claims of the Mayawati government.