In yet another attempt to woo the Brahmins in Uttar Pradesh, Congress leader and former minister Jitin Prasad has launched a “Brahmin Chetna Samvad”, which will be conducted via social media in every district of the state.
Jitin Prasad, who heads the Brahmin Chetna Parishad, claimed that the community members are being neglected and are facing step motherly treatment by the present Yogi Adityanath government in the state. He said that he is making efforts to give voice to the community which is being “systematically targeted” by the current regime.
Talking to The Daily Guardian, Prasad said, “I am trying to raise the issue of targeted killings of the Brahmins in various districts of the state. Someone from the community will have to come and make its voice heard.” He also pointed out the issue of representation of the community in the current regime.
He said, “Yes, I accept that many leaders of the community are part of the government, But it is only a token representation. Look at the departments given to the ministers from the Brahmin community, no one is given such portfolios which have direct connection to the common people.”
The Congress leader also claimed that his efforts are not related to politics, but he is trying to give voice to the community which is being deprived of its rights and the need of the hour is to unite and fight for its identity. Brahmin Chetna Parishad would act as a platform to hear the problems faced by the community, and help them, he added.
Though Jitin Prasad did not accept it as an attempt to woo the community voters, senior journalist Sharat Pradhan clearly sees it as an effort by the Congress to win back the Brahmins which used to be traditional supporters of his party before the Mandir-Mandal politics era.
Speaking to The Daily Guardian from Lucknow, Pradhan said, “Brahmins are a very dominating caste in the state and it has potential to affect the outcome of an election result. We all saw what happened in the 2007 Assembly election when the community decided to go with Mayawati and her party got an absolute majority. As SP and BSP are not being seen anywhere on the ground, the Congress is trying to place itself as the main opposition party in the state. The real target for the Congress is to win back the Muslim voters in the state who are fed up with the Samajwadi Party. If Congress cements its position in the Brahmins community, then Muslims who make up almost 20% of the population of the state can see some hope in Congress and give it a chance.”
This is not the first attempt by the Congress to reach out to the Brahmin community which is estimated to make up about 10% of UP’s population. In 2007, Rita Bahuguna Joshi was also projected as the party’s Brahmin face.