Latest news with #Pasis
Indian Express
4 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Why Anupriya Patel's party has placed a little-known Dalit leader at the helm in UP
Though the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections are a couple of years away, parties in the state are already jostling for the all-important Dalit vote, with a OBC party like BJP ally Apna Dal (Soneylal) that draws its support from mostly the Other Backward Classes (OBC) Kurmi community also making efforts to reach out to Dalit communities. To that end, the party on May 29 appointed R P Gautam, a Jatav leader, as its state president. Gautam is from Sitapur and currently serves as the president of the Apna Dal's cooperative wing. Since he is little known — he has not contested any election till now — the party is planning to increase his visibility among people through public meetings that party chief and Union Minister Anupriya Patel is also likely to attend. According to insiders, Gautam's name was finalised after a group of top party leaders, including Anupriya and Uttar Pradesh Minister Ashish Patel, her husband, held a series of meetings in Delhi and Lucknow over the last month. Explaining why Gautam was chosen, a party leader said, 'Other Dalit sub-castes are scattered and are concentrated in certain regions and districts, but Jatavs are spread across all 403 Assembly constituencies of the state and number around 30,000-50,000 in each seat.' The move comes close on the heels of the Samajwadi Party (SP) stepping up its efforts to reach out to Dalits and inducting Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) founder-member Daddu Prasad. The party also held week-long celebrations to commemorate Dr B R Ambedkar's birth anniversary on April 14. Recently, when its MP Ramji Lal Suman came under fire for his alleged derogatory comments on Rajput king Rana Sanga, the SP countered by saying the attacks were 'anti-Dalit'. Dalits make up 21% of Uttar Pradesh's population, of which Jatavs make up 14%, followed by the Pasis at 7%. While Jatavs are seen to be the core voter base of the Mayawati-led BSP, Pasis have rallied behind the SP since last year's Lok Sabha elections. After bagging the most parliamentary seats from UP, the SP promoted Faizabad MP Awadesh Prasad, who belongs to the community. Another Apna Dal said that support from the Jatavs, combined with the party's core Kurmi and Extremely Backward Classes (EBC) support base, will put it in a good position in next year's local body elections as well as the Assembly polls. At present, the party has 13 MLAs while Anupriya is its sole Lok Sabha MP. Senior Apnal Dal leaders pointed to the successes the BSP achieved when its Jatav support base combined with OBC faces such as Ram Khelawan Verma, Babu Singh Kushwaha, and Lalji Verma. The social combination, according to the leader, has been the foundation of the Apna Dal since its inception in November 1995 by Sonelal Patel who, he said, was an avid follower of BSP founder Kanshi Ram. Though Sonelal Patel did not win any election, he made his presence felt in the state's politics and rose to become a Kurmi face. The Apna Dal currently holds sway in areas such as Prayagraj, Kaushambi and its adjoining districts. Ashish Patel said the Apna Dal's foundational value was always uplifting the suppressed classes. 'Of our 13 legislators, five are from Dalit communities (three Jatavs, one Kol and one Pasi), five from the Kurmi community and one each from the Brahmin, Muslim and Sonar communities. This is evidence that our party gives representation to all the communities,' he said. Though it came as a surprise to many that Gautam was appointed, it is not the first time that the party has chosen a Dalit leader to helm its Uttar Pradesh unit. Earlier, Jamuna Prasad Saroj, a Pasi leader, led the state unit. The rejig was necessitated after the party's state executive was dissolved about a year ago following the resignation of former state chief Rajkumar Pal, an OBC leader. Alleging that Ashish and Anupriya Patel were 'ignoring' him and 'not keeping him in the loop' about party affairs, Pal had said in his resignation letter that the party had deviated from the ideology of Ambedkar and Sonelal Patel. A senior Apna Dal leader said Pal's 'odd behaviour and other activities' had led to the state executive being dissolved and claimed that the former state chief 'had been warned several times' about his actions.
Time of India
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
JD(U) neta urges CM to lift ban on toddy
Patna: CM Nitish Kumar was confronted with a bold demand to lift the ban on toddy during his visit to the JD(U) office on Monday with one party leader warning of electoral consequences if the matter is ignored. Munna Chaudhary, who identifies as vice-president of JD(U)'s scheduled caste cell, told reporters that the CM directed party's state president Umesh Singh Kushwaha to look into the issue and submit a detailed report. Munna urged Nitish to exclude toddy from the state's liquor prohibition law, arguing that it contains no liquor. "Toddy is not liquor. The Pasi community, which depends on toddy for livelihood, has suffered greatly since the blanket ban in 2016," he said. He added that over 500 Pasis have died from falls while tapping toddy, yet victim families have not received any compensation. "Toddy is an integral part of our community's life and livelihood. The govt must pay attention to our plight," he said. Nitish's impromptu visit to the party office surprised many and Munna seized the opportunity to hand over a letter outlining his demands. The issue has gained political traction with RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav promising to lift the toddy ban if elected to power. NDA ally and HAM(S) patron Jitan Ram Manjhi has also repeatedly called for relaxation of prohibition laws.
Time of India
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
To consolidate SC votes, BJP to reach out to 6,000 influential Dalits
1 2 Lucknow: In a bid to consolidate support among Scheduled Castes, BJP has decided to launch another outreach campaign aimed at engaging 1,000 influential Dalit personalities in each of the six organisational regions of Uttar Pradesh. The campaign will be spearheaded by party's SC Morcha in coordination with senior state functionaries. A campaign plan was recently drawn up by the BJP central leadership, which asked the state unit to reach out to the various sub-castes within the Dalits, including Jatavs, Pasis, Koris and Dhobis. "We will gather broader feedback from the influential sections amongst the Dalit and take corrective measures wherever needed," UP BJP SC Morcha president Ram Chandra Kannaujia told TOI on Friday. The campaign is seen as part of a broader electoral strategy to counter opposition narratives while reinforcing the BJP's footprints in the SC-dominated constituencies. BJP has demarcated UP into six organisational regions: Kashi, Gorakhpur, Awadh, Kanpur, Braj and western UP. Sources said that a dedicated team of party functionaries has been tasked to identify prominent Dalit people, including retired bureaucrats, teachers, social workers, religious figures, community leaders and professionals, whose influence could potentially impact a collective opinion within the SC community. The outreach comes at a time when the BJP faces stiff competition from the Opposition, primarily the Samajwadi Party and its ally Congress, besides the BSP, which have historically enjoyed significant support among Dalit voters. Kannaujia said that the campaign will aim to intensify its messaging around social justice, economic empowerment, and welfare measures targeted at SC communities. Experts said that personal interaction with influential Dalit figures can help dispel perceptions of exclusion and infuse a sense of political inclusion amongst the Dalit community. The campaign also aims to highlight the role of Dalit leaders within the BJP itself. Plans are also afoot to organise felicitation programmes and community service events in Dalit-dominated areas. These events will serve as platforms for dialogue on govt policies and community welfare. The development comes days after BJP initiated a 'dialogue' programme in various districts. The programme was spearheaded by state general secretary (organisation) Dharam Pal Singh. These meetings aimed to boost the morale of Dalit functionaries and prepare them for future campaigns, sources said. Though assembly elections are still two years away, BJP's early start signals its intent to consolidate its support base and blunt any early moves by its political rivals. Party analysts believe that the Dalit vote, which constitutes over 21% of UP's population, could be a deciding factor in several tightly contested seats. "The idea is not just to win elections, but to win trust," said a BJP SC Morcha leader. "Our party believes in Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, and we are proving that through direct engagement and representation," he said.
Indian Express
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Eye on Pasi vote, Tejashwi, Chirag bat for toddy exemption from liquor, corner Nitish
When Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar was considering a liquor ban in the state in early 2016, he had faced resistance from his then senior Mahagathbandhan partner, the Lalu Prasad-led RJD. According to RJD sources, one of the reasons for the party's stance against prohibition was that several liquor traders then were from the Yadav community, its core base. However, the RJD had to give in due to Nitish's strong insistence and the point that the CM had got massive women support for his prohibition proposal. Yet, the RJD tried to impress upon Nitish the need to exclude toddy from the ambit of prohibition, sources said. But Nitish, who had led the Mahagathbandhan to a landslide win just a few months back in the October-November 2015 Assembly polls was unrelenting in his push for a total liquor ban in the state. Bihar saw complete prohibition since the enforcement of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act in April 2016. Last Sunday, addressing a gathering of the Pasi community (Scheduled Caste) in Patna, RJD leader and Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Assembly, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, highlighted the RJD's opposition to inclusion of toddy in the 2016 prohibition law. 'I (as the then Deputy CM in the Mahagathbandhan government) had tried hard to convince Nitish Kumar to keep toddy out of the liquor category as the Pasi community had been extracting toddy from the palm and date trees for generations as their traditional occupation. But the CM did not listen,' he said. Tejashwi then reiterated that 'If the Mahagathbandhan is voted to power in the Assembly polls (slated for October-November 2025), we will exclude toddy from the prohibition law'. At the Pasi event, Tejashwi also announced that toddy would be given the industry status in the state. During his tenure as the CM in the 1990s, Lalu had waived off tax from toddy. The Pasi community accounts for about 1% of Bihar's population. They are the fifth largest group among the SCs which make up 19.65% of the population. As per an estimate, about 5 lakh Pasis had been earning their livelihood by selling toddy before the imposition of prohibition in the state. While Tejashwi has been trying to expand the RJD's base beyond the party's traditional M-Y (Muslim-Yadav) supporters, his repeated pitch for exclusion of toddy from the prohibition regime has been seen in political circles as 'a signal to lift liquor ban in a phased-manner in the event of the Mahagathbandhan's return to power'. Tejashwi has often underlined the 'failures' of the prohibition policy by citing the continuing seizure of liquor, mounting cases and overcrowding of jails with most undertrials held in minor cases belonging to the underprivileged and vulnerable sections. Since April 2016, the state has seen over 350 hooch deaths and 9.36 lakh prohibition-related cases involving 14.32 lakh arrests till March 31, 2025. The RJD's key ally Congress supported Tejashwi's stand on the toddy issue. Bihar Congress spokesperson Gyan Ranjan Gupta said: 'Pasi community takes immense risks in extracting toddy by climbing tall trees. By bringing toddy under prohibition, Nitish Kumar removed Pasis from their traditional occupation. A review should be done to restore the community's livelihood and its rightful claims on the toddy sale.' The JD (U) accused the RJD of doing a 'U-turn' on the issue and dared it to seek the views of women voters. JD (U) chief spokesperson and MLC Neeraj Kumar said: 'The RJD's constitution clearly says that only one abstaining from narcotic and psychotropic substances can become its member. In fact, RJD used to get financial support from liquor traders before 2016. I also dare RJD to get signatures from random women voters on excluding toddy from prohibition. As for our government, it has supported over two lakh Pasis by giving them Rs 2 lakh assistance each to raise goats and take up other professions.' The JD(U)'s senior ally BJP also hit out at Tejashwi over the row. BJP spokesperson Manoj Kumar Sharma said: 'Prohibition law was passed by the Bihar Legislature with a voice vote. RJD, which was the single largest party after the 2015 polls, supported total prohibition. What had stopped RJD from sending a team to the fields for a survey on the good or bad impact of toddy's inclusion in the liquor category? They are trying to make it a plank for the Pasi vote. But it would boomerang on them'. However, another NDA ally Chirag Paswan, the Union Minister and LJP (Ram Vilas) president, said that toddy is a 'natural product', holding that it must not be categorised as liquor in the state. 'I have said many times that as an NDA partner, my party may be supporting the government in the state, but it is not part of the regime here. I certainly believe that toddy, a natural product, must not be considered liquor,' Chirag told reporters while reacting to Tejashwi's statement. Significantly, while launching the Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) on October 2 last year, Prashant Kishor had asserted that his party would lift liquor ban in Bihar immediately after coming to power and use the excise revenue from alcohol running into several thousand crore for improving the quality of education in the state. The state's total annual revenue from its tax collection and other sources currently stands at about Rs 56,000 crore. Facing various prohibition-related rows over the years, the Nitish government has made multiple amendments to the 2016 law. The last such amendment was brought in May 2023 when the state government decided to lower penalty for release of impounded vehicles from 50% of its insurance cover to 10%. In December 2021, the then Chief Justice of India N V Ramana had flagged the Bihar liquor law as an example of 'lack of foresight' that resulted in the High Court 'being clogged with bail applications… a simple bail application takes a year to be disposed'. Some key amendments were subsequently made to the prohibition law in 2022. One of them provided that first-time drinkers would no longer be imprisoned but would be only penalised with a fine of Rs 2,000-Rs 5,000 depending upon the socio-economic condition of the accused. This brought substantial reduction in people jailed for liquor consumption. Other amendments included reversal of confiscation of an accused house upon recovery of liquor, restoration of Rs 4 lakh compensation to the kin of a deceased in a hooch consumption case, and reduction of punishment for drinking alcohol from 10 years to 3 years. The government also provided for summary trial of the prohibition cases by an executive magistrate.
