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This alliance is not imposed on us from above. It is an alliance that started on the ground and leaders have no other way than accepting it, claims SP’s district president in Etah Ashraf Husain.
Husain explained how his party workers enthusiastically participated in the BR Ambedkar’s birthday celebrations a year ago on 14 April. “It was for the first time that the SP workers participated in huge numbers in the procession along with the BSP cadre. We garlanded the Ambedkar statue here. This year, the celebration was much more festive,” Husain said.
Etah has sizeable presence of both the SP and the BSP cadre. “It is the livelihood issues that brought the cadre together. Everyone is distressed by the policies of the BJP government. GST, demonetisation, unemployment and farmers’ problems have affected everyone. The workers of both the parties want the leaders to shed their differences and remove the BJP from power,” Husain added.
BSP supremo Mayawati’s speech on April 19 at Mainpuri gave a momentum to the joint efforts of both the parties. First time after becoming the BSP chief, she campaigned for here bete noire Mulayam Singh Yadav.
“In Kannauj also, we have been celebrating the Ambedkar Jayanti together with the BSP. After Mayawati’s speech, there is a new vigour among the cadre,’ said Anshul Gupta, an SP functionary in Kannauj.
A BSP insider said the district presidents of both the parties meet informally almost every other day in all UP districts.
Every vehicle used for the campaigns has the flags of both the parties. “Booth committees are in action for more than six months now,” said Gupta.
In Moradabad, the alliance is working well, claimed SP leader and MLA Haji Ikram Qureshi. “In Nagina and Bijnor, our votes got completely transferred to the BSP candidates. “The message has gone to the ground and the response is visible,” said SP candidate in Moradabad ST Hasan.
The BJP, however, feels that the “historic” conflict between Yadavs and Dalits will foil the alliance. “There are a number of cases against people belonging to the Yadav community for usurping land of Dalits and atrocities against them. This alliance is just among some leaders. People on the ground have rejected it,” said Vikram Singh, a BJP leader from Kannauj.
Resolving differences
SP functionary Anshul Gupta said, “the alliance leaders are not saying that there are no issues at all. “In some booths, there have been issues linked to the past events. Leaders of both the parties have gone there and ensured peace,” said Gupta.
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