Lucknow: Two former MPs, a Miss India runner-up, the wife of an alleged gangster — this week’s Uttar Pradesh panchayat elections are drawing attention for the high-profile candidates in the fray.
The four-phase panchayat elections start 15 April, with results scheduled for 2 May.
The candidates include Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Ram Sagar Rawat, 70, a four-time MP and three-term MLA, who is contesting from Barabanki’s Siddhaur area.
Seema Upadhyay, former Fatehpur Sikri MP, is in the fray from Hathras.
Model Diksha Singh, a runner-up of the 2015 Miss India pageant, has filed her nomination from Jaunpur. This is her first political outing.
Another candidate in Jaunpur, from a different ward, is Srikala, wife of “gangster-turned-politician” Dhananjay Singh.
And, till Sunday, there was also former MLA and Unnao rape convict Kuldeep Singh Sengar’s wife Sangeeta Sengar, but the BJP withdrew her name after facing criticism.
Panchayat-level candidates contest as Independents. Panchayat elections are not fought on party lines, UP State Election Commission Officials said, but added that parties may declare support for certain candidates.
Sengar, for example, was backed by the BJP, and Rawat by the Samajwadi Party (SP).
While panchayat polls have never been known to enjoy a pride of place on the political calendar, they are courting a deeper focus from parties as they look to firm up their rural base.
The BJP, for example, is learnt to have asked state cabinet ministers and all senior leaders to campaign for the position, while state Congress president Ajay Lallu is out in the field for an election he describes as “very important to the party”.
Asked about the growing profile of the rural elections, political analysts say parties see them as a “semi-final” before assembly elections, which are due in UP next year. There are other factors too, they add, for example the advent of social media, which has ensured much celebrity for panchayat-level leaders as well.
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‘Villages happy, country happy’
Speaking to ThePrint, UP BJP spokesperson Harish Srivastava noted that a “very large population lives in villages”.
“According to PM Modi’s vision, if villages are happy, then the whole country will be happy, so that’s why these rural polls are very important…. because it gives voice to the people,” he said.
“It also empowers them in various ways, so we are trying our best in these panchayat polls. We will talk to voters about the scheme of the central and the UP governments for villagers.”
Congress UP president Ajay Lallu said he has been conducting “8 to 9 jan sabhas (public meetings) daily” ahead of the panchayat elections.
“This poll is very important for us. It will also help develop our organisation in gram panchayats,” he added.
Senior SP leader Abhishek Mishra offered a similar assessment, saying these polls will “strengthen the party in rural areas”.
According to Professor Kamal Kumar, who teaches political science at Lucknow University, panchayat polls are the “new buzz”.
“This panchayat poll has become a platform for showcasing all their (candidates’) powers before the assembly elections. If you see the background of all the high-profile names in the panchayat polls, most of them belong to political families,” he added.
“These families somehow want to show their strength to their political parties. Another reason is that, these days, due to the presence of social media, rural elections are also becoming glamorous. For example, a zila panchayat adhyaksh (president) or block pramukh (chief) are as popular as an MLA or an MP. They get a grand welcome from their supporters. They have several powers too.”
Prof. Kaviraj, a Lucknow-based political commentator, said there has been a distinct shift in the conduct of panchayat elections. “This time, mostly, political parties are officially releasing the names of candidates. Earlier, very few did,” he added. “They are now considering it a semi-final for the 2022 assembly election. These polls will also decide the mood of the village. It’s a good opportunity for the opposition also. They may get some candidates for the 2022 elections who do well in these panchayat polls.”
Why they are contesting
Rawat, who won the Barabanki Lok Sabha seat in 1989, 1991, 1996 and 1999, contested from the constituency again in 2004 and 2019 but lost. The SP leader is contesting the panchayat polls from Barabanki’s Siddhaur area.
“I have wanted to do something for villages since childhood. I mostly spend time in rural areas, and that is why I am contesting panchayat polls,” he said. “Another reason is to strengthen the party’s hold in rural areas.”
Seema Upadhyay, contesting as an Independent, is up against her sister-in-law Ritu Upadhyay, who has the BJP’s support.
Seema’s husband Ramveer Upadhyay is a BSP MLA who also served as a cabinet minister in the erstwhile Mayawati government, but is learnt to be no longer on good terms with the party.
Miss India 2015 runner-up Diksha Singh, another independent, is seeking election as a zilla panchayat member from Ward No. 26 in Jaunpur. Asked why she is contesting, Diksha told mediapersons last week that she felt the need to do something for her hometown. “Jaunpur district is far away from development. So, I have come for the panchayat elections, thinking of bringing some change.”
Srikala has filed her nomination papers from Ward No. 45 in Jaunpur district. She joined the BJP in Telangana in August 2019 but is contesting as an independent. Her husband Dhananjay, wanted for his alleged role in the murder of former Mau block president Ajit Singh, surrendered last month.
Other candidates in the fray include Naseem Begum, wife of BSP MLA Aslam Choudhary, Mukesh Agrawal, brother of BJP leader Naresh Agrawal, and Vandana Yadav, wife of SP MLA Raju Yadav.
(Edited by Sunanda Ranjan)
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