Raj Babbar’s homecoming pulls locals towards Congress in Fatehpur Sikri

Raj Babbar’s strong local connections, a divided BJP due to shunting out of sitting MP and a not so strong BSP candidate could help Congress win on the western UP seat of Fatehpur Sikri

Congress’ candidate from Fatehpur Sikri, Raj Babbar, campaigning at a local village ahead of the April 18 vote/@RajBabbarMP
Congress’ candidate from Fatehpur Sikri, Raj Babbar, campaigning at a local village ahead of the April 18 vote/@RajBabbarMP
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Dhairya Maheshwari

The decision of Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) chief Raj Babbar to contest the Lok Sabha elections from Fatehpur Sikri, a constituency adjoining Agra, is being viewed by locals as a shot-in-arm for the grand old party.

Locals say that overcoming Babbar could prove to be next to impossible for both the gathbandhan as well as the BJP candidate contesting on the seat.

“Raj Babbar has been visiting the villages and meeting people. He is trying hard to woo the Jaat voters, most of who voted the BJP in the last elections,” says Kamal Kishore, the pradhan of Nainana village, a predominantly Jatav community, in the Fatehpur Sikri constituency.

“There is surely going to be a split in the Jatav vote here this time around,” says the village head, adding that the Bahujan voter in the constituency is not finding the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate Bhagwan Sharma alias Guddu Pandit as particularly appealing.

“He doesn’t have much time to campaign and establish a connect with the voter, as he was declared as his party’s nominee quite late. Raj Babbar, on the other hand, is a local who has been a two-term MP from the seat,” highlights Kishore.

The BJP, on the other hand, has been facing internal troubles from its ground workers for its decision to replace the sitting MP Chaudhary Babu Lal with Raj Kumar Chahar. Locals say that Babu Lal enjoys a good reputation among the Jaat voter and wanted to re-contest from the seat that he won in 2014, securing over 44 per cent of the vote.

“The Jaats voted for him in 2014. There was also a Modi wave at the time. This time around, there is no such wave in favour of Modi,” says Kishore.

Together, Babbar is relying on votes from Jatavs, Muslims, Kushwahas and a section of Jaats and Thakurs to help him clinch the election.

In fact, Kushwahas, classified as a backward caste, are said to be the decision-makers in this election. While the community went with the BJP in the last election, the community, who are weavers, farmers and daily-wage earners, was badly hit by demonetisation.

“Babbar’s decision to induct our leader Bhagwan Singh Kushwaha is being appreciated in the community. The Kushwaha vote is particularly important here,” says Prakash Kushwaha, a small-time weaver in Fatehpur Sikri.

“The Kushwaha vote this time will be split. Many might go with Raj Babbar,” he predicts.

While BSP supremo Mayawati made a strong pitch to Muslim voters to shun Congress in favour of gathbandhan candidates at the gathbandhan’s first joint rally in Deoband on Sunday, Muslim voters say that their choice during voting will be guided more by the local candidate.

“Raj Babbar is being seen as a favourable candidate here. He is a leader of national stature,” says a Muslim worker at a leather business in Agra’s Sadar Bazar. A resident of Bah village in Fatehpur Sikri, he says that Modi’s decision to demonetise high-value notes had hit the local business hard.

“We still remember the date. It was Dec 8. Everyone in the leather industry, particularly the Muslims and the chamaars (a Bahujan subcaste), were affected. The business hasn’t been able to pick up to pre-demonetisation levels yet,” he says.

The constituency of Fatehpur Sikri has approximately 2 lakh Jaats, 1.50 lakh Kushwaha voters and over a lakh Muslim voters. Thakurs and Brahmins together comprise six lakh voters, almost half of the constituency’s voters. While both the communities have traditionally been seen as BJP’s vote bank, a section of the voters may go with Congress this time around.

The Congress’ decision to induct local Thakur leaders Thakur Surajpal Singh and Dharmpal Singh is definitely going to affect the voting patterns, predicts a Congress worker associated with Babbar’s campaign.

The constituency of Fatehpur Sikri goes to vote on April 18 in the second-phase of the Lok Sabha elections.

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