BJP supporters to use demonetisation to seek mandate in Uttar Pradesh

VARANASI | SIDDHARTHNAGAR: Eastern Uttar Pradesh, much like the rest of the poll-bound state, is awash in competing colours of the major political parties vying to sway the electorate.

A tour of several districts revealed voters speaking their mind, with their opinions, on the issue of demonetisation for instance, reflecting the colour of their political allegiance.

Sample this. “Cash restrictions have hurt us. Not only paddy sales payments in local market have got delayed but prices dipped as well,” said Rajman Verma, who hails from extremely backward traditional betel cultivating Barai community, at Siswan-Amanhawa village corner in Maharajganj assembly segment.

Verma, who is in his early 40s, spoke up after another extremely backward community member praised the Narendra Modi government’s decision on November 8 last year to withdraw Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes as legal tender. “Note ban decision is for us poor.

Whatever will be unearthed in black money will be ploughed back for the welfare of poor,” said Ghisiyawan Vishwakarma, in his mid-40s, hailing from extremely backward traditional blacksmith community. Vishwakarma, on his part, sought to dilute the objections to demonetisation raised by his fellow villager Rajman.

The opinions of all three were in keeping with their electoral allegiance, with Vishwakarma indicating his preference to vote for the BJP and the others ranged against the party.

A Dalit or a Yadav or a Muslim or an extremely backward community member indicating to vote for the SP, BSP or Congress appeared more likely to criticise demonetisation while those inclined to vote for the BJP stoutly defended the Centre’s decision, irrespective of their economic status.

“Labourers do not have black money. We’ll be happy only when we get something in our bank accounts. Note ban in itself doesn’t benefit us,” said Haridas, a daily wage labourer in his 30s, from a nearby village in Chakia town of Chakia assembly segment in Ghazipur district.

So which party is Haridas set to support? Surely not the BJP, as his comment indicated. Haridas, a Dalit, and his group of same social group assembled for an evening tea indicated Mayawati-led BSP as their preference, before recounting how their daily wage jobs vanished after the note ban that added to their woes.

When faced with such objections in a group with diverse voting preferences, BJP supporters said that the initial inconvenience of cash crunch was inevitable for cleaning the house. Some even argued that bank employees were to blame for poor implementation of note recall.

“Ask them whose wages have been affected. All of them are unhappy,” said Umesh Nishad, in his early 30s, hailing from fisherman community, rebutting a fellow community member from Bargadahi village in Pipraich assembly segment of Gorakhpur district.

When Rajnath Nishad supported demonetisation and sought to play down the inconvenience caused by cash crunch by blaming bank employees, Umesh said, “Isn’t it (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi’s task also to check those bank employees?” Within predominantly fishermen community of Nishads, too, opinion on demonetisation appeared to have been coloured by voting preferences.

Most of those indicating a preference for parties other than the BJP did not bring up demonetisation while discussing reasons for their electoral choices, but many BJP supporters did so, citing the Centre’s move among the reasons for their electoral preference.

The latter said the move will yield dividends for the poor, arguing that some inconveniences should be accepted for larger good. The issue did not appear to have caused deep polarisation among the electorate, even as it seemed to have given a plank to vocal BJP supporters to seek another chance for the party in the state where it has been out of power for more than 14 years.