Farmer’s unity may get the better of BJP’s divisive campaign

Akhilesh Tripathi

Lucknow: The Samajwadi PartyRashtriya Lok Dal (SPRLD) alliance has now brought in farmers’ unity as the major tool to counter BJP’s communally divisive campaign. The alliance’s social media team’s video showing farmer leader Naresh Tikait blessing RLD chief Jayant Chaudhury by placing his hands on his head, has gone viral across the State asking people to vote for those who are committed to solve their economic woes rather than the ones who are out to sow divisions within communities.

Chaudhury visited Naresh Tikait, elder brother of Rakesh Tikait, at the Bharatiya Kisan Union headquarters at Sisauli on Sunday and received his blessings. The viral video has unnerved the BJP whose leaders including Amit Shah were stoking memories of riots at Muzaffarnagar in 2014 and dubbing the SP-RLD alliance as rowdy elements. In a statement issued on Sunday, Samyukt Kisan Morcha said they would not allow the BJP to divide the Hindus and Muslims with its references to Jinnah. Polling will be held in two phases for the 113 seats falling under 20 districts of western Uttar Pradesh. While polling will be held for 58 seats on February 10, another 55 seats will witness the polling on February 14. Most of these seats have heavy concentration of Jat and Muslim voters. The SP-RLD alliance can sail through to the victory post if the two communities unitedly cast their votes for their candidates.

Naresh Tikait while addressing election rallies during the last three days declared that they needed no certificate from the Hindutva brigade for their being Hindus. They even do not wish to tell the voters who is against farmers as the BJP has proved itself to be agents of corporate houses who are out to grab their farms and reduce them to ‘khet mazdoor’ (farm labourers). Going by the social demography, the SP-RLD alliance has mainly nominated candidates from the communities that form its main vote base. The BJP mainly focused its attention on seats where alliance’s Muslim candidates are pitted against the BJP’s candidates.