BHOPAL – As the Madhya Pradesh election goes down to the wire, the ruling BJP and Congress are banking big on OBC and women voters to tilt the scales in their favour.
The Congress underlines its slogan “Jitni aabadi, utna haq (rights proportional to population),” while its party president Mallikarjun Kharge and senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi have repeatedly promised a caste census. They have also demanded an OBC quota within women’s reservation. Meanwhile, the biggest USP of four-time Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan remains his government’s women-oriented schemes.
However, in terms of tickets, the focus on OBC or women voters is not as prominent. The BJP, which has given the state three successive OBC CMs — Uma Bharti, Babu Lal Gaur and Chouhan — is slightly ahead of the Congress when it comes to OBC candidates. While the BJP has 71 in its list, or 30% of its total, the Congress has fielded 62, or 27% of the total.
Asked about this, a Congress leader said, “It’s not just about numbers. We have fielded efficient candidates, based on their winnability. We are also promising OBC voters 27% reservation. It is true that in the past, the BJP may have advanced strong OBC faces in the state, but they are now old. We are developing a young OBC leadership.”
He added that this would take time. Earlier, the party’s strong OBC leaders included former Deputy CM Subhash Yadav’s son, Arun Yadav. But he has been sidelined due to his rivalry with current PCC president Kamal Nath and, after having lost the 2018 electoral battle against Chouhan from Budhni, hasn’t been nominated this year. While CWC member Kamleshwar Patel is being groomed as his alternative, party insiders said the problem was that Patel keeps a low profile.
BJP leaders are more confident about their OBC voter base. “We have strong OBC leaders in the state… We now even have Union Minister Prahlad Patel as a candidate. He is no Shivraj, but there is no one in the Congress who can come close to him.”
At over 48% of the total 5.52 crore voters in the state, women voters are a crucial vote bank, whom the BJP led by Chouhan has painstakingly wooed. In 18 of the 230 Assembly seats, they outnumber men. At a campaign rally in Satna recently, PM Narendra Modi said the Madhya Pradesh election was going to be interesting, as “the future of MP is going to be decided by mothers and sisters”.
If Chouhan hopes his Ladli Behana schemes will see him through, the BJP has also been highlighting the passage of the women’s reservation Act providing 33% reservation to women in Parliament and Assemblies. When it comes to tickets though, if the Congress has fielded 30 women (13% of total), the BJP has put up 28 (12%).
Both parties admit winnability trumped gender while choosing candidates. Said a BJP leader, “We are committed to fielding women leaders. You can see that in our efforts.”
Amidst an election marked by a strong Hindutva tinge, one community that has got squeezed out are Muslims. The BJP has not given a ticket to any Muslim, who form 7% of the state’s population. The Congress has fielded only two. A Congress leader said, “We have given tickets to strong Muslim leaders in Bhopal. But apart from some pockets, they don’t have any substantial sway in any region.”
C-Indian Express
