RLD moots Ambedkar Panchteerth plan to tap Dalit voters
(RLD) president
has intensified efforts to consolidate the Dalit vote bank in western Uttar Pradesh ahead of next year's panchayat elections and the 2027 UP elections. His recent push for Ambedkar Teerth Sthal Yatra Yojana has shifted focus to the party's strategy of strengthening support among Dalit communities.
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In a letter to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on July 28, Chaudhary emphasised the need to enable Dalit and socially oppressed sections to visit Panchteerth – the five key sites associated with BR Ambedkar. These are Mhow-Janmabhoomi, London-Shiksha Bhoomi, Delhi-Mahaparinirvan Sthal, Nagpur-Diksha Bhoomi, and Mumbai-Chaitya Bhoomi.
"Due to govt efforts, these pilgrimage sites have now developed into major tourist destinations as well as sources of inspiration.
However, for economically weaker sections, visiting these places remains difficult. Therefore, to support them, a scheme named Ambedkar Teerth Sthal Yatra Yojana should be launched, so that people can easily visit and experience five major places associated with Dr Ambedkar's life," the RLD chief said.
He said the scheme would make people understand Ambedkar's principles and ideas for building an egalitarian society.
"It would not only promote social harmony but also serve as a concrete step towards realising Ambedkar's dreams," Jayant, also a Union minister, said.
Experts said that by invoking Ambedkar and focusing on Panchteerth, Jayant Chaudhary is attempting to build an emotional and ideological alignment with Dalit voters, a group that has largely been loyal to
, and in recent years courted by BJP and SP.
They added that this also marks Jayant's another bid to channelise the Dalit vote bank amid the rise of Azad Samaj Party chief Chandrashekhar Azad, who won the Nagina parliamentary seat in 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
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Analysts said Jayant's letter to Yogi puts the state govt on record. It also avoids confrontation and indicates that RLD is playing within the constitutional and cultural framework, respecting its alliance with BJP while retaining its independent identity. RLD sources said the party wants to consolidate the Dalits, primarily the Jatav community, which has traditionally been the supporter of Bahujan Samaj Party.
With BSP's political graph has been on a decline in recent years, the RLD sees an opportunity to fill in the vacuum.
RLD national secretary Anupam Mishra said the party has stepped up its outreach to Dalits in recent times and added that "we need to work more aggressively to sustain our momentum and get more closely associated with Dalits and other oppressed classes." Sources said RLD has been sending feelers amongst Dalits since 2024 when it snapped ties with Samajwadi Party and joined the BJP-led NDA. In fact, it was Anil Kumar, a Dalit MLA from Purkazi (Muzaffarnagar), who got a ministerial seat during UP cabinet expansion in 2024.
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