Local resentment & Samajwadi Party’s Dalit gamble: How BJP lost Ayodhya

AYODHYA: “Na Mathura, na Kashi, abki baar Awadhesh Pasi” (Neither Mathura nor Kashi, this time Awadhesh Pasi) — this battle cry of Samajwadi Party triumphed over BJP’s Ram temple gambit in Ayodhya, much to the embarrassment of the saffron camp.
Even as BJP played the temple card in a big way across the country in these elections, the birthplace of Lord Ram rejected the party, which lost in four of the five assembly segments in Faizabad constituency, under which Ayodhya falls.
Samajwadi Party took a gamble by fielding Awadhesh Prasad, who belonged to the scheduled caste Pasi community, on a general seat. A nine-time MLA and former minister, he trounced BJP’s Lallu Singh by 55,000 votes. Anti-incumbency against two-time MP Lallu was evident in rural pockets.
This is the first time since 1957 that Faizabad has sent an SC representative to Parliament. “BJP left no stone unturned to seek votes in the name of Ram temple. During polls, the party made sure all the prominent leaders associated with it, governors from BJP-ruled states and other dignitaries kept visiting Ram temple, for their political gains. But the local people realised they were being misled,” Awadhesh said.
The saffron camp showcased the “development” happening in and around Ayodhya post-temple construction. But it was exactly this “makeover” that proved its nemesis in Ayodhya. While the PDA (pichhda, dalit and alpsankhyak) formula of Akhilesh Yadav certainly helped in consolidating the voters, the transformation and development of the city introduced a series of problems for local residents.
Sharad Kapoor, director of one of the oldest hotels in the city, Shan-e-Awadh, said: “Barricades, police bandobast, traffic diversions, VIP culture, afsarshahi (bureaucratic dominance) and inadequate compensation for property owners are some issues which have been affecting local residents and traders in the city. In the rural pockets, too, a sense of insecurity has gripped villagers.”
With land becoming the priciest asset in Faizabad, the local administration and development authority have been regulating property transactions in the city and notifying acquisition of agricultural land parcels on the outskirts for further expansion. BJP’s local brass was aware of the growing unrest over these issues but had little say in taking decisions.