The reputation of two former ministers and a strongman is at stake. BJP ‘Bahubali’ with Dhananjay’s strength in Jaunpur: Way easier with Srikala’s removal; BSP’s Yadav candidate is harming SP – Jaunpur News

May 23, 2024 Divya Bharat

May 6, 2024. On the last day of nomination in Jaunpur, Mayawati canceled the ticket of Srikala Reddy. Srikala is the wife of Baahubali Dhananjay Singh. Dhananjay wrote on social media – Power, governments and parties are from us, not us from them.

Dhananjay Singh, who came out of jail, proved this message correct and started the election campaign for BJP candidate Kripashankar Singh. On the other hand, in Delhi, Srikala met Home Minister Amit Shah. Here Dhananjay Singh told the supporters – BJP is doing the right thing, vote for them only.

This is a big dent for BSP candidate Shyam Singh Yadav on Jaunpur seat, because most of the voters from General, OBC and Muslim community are under the influence of Dhananjay Singh. For damage control, BSP leaders said that Sreekala Reddy herself returned the ticket, but Dhananjay denied it. He claimed that the ticket was cut.

Dhananjay is now seen on the BJP platform. Asking supporters to vote for the BJP candidate.

Jaunpur is one of the 5 seats in Purvanchal which BJP could not win
Jaunpur seat is important for BJP, because Jaunpur seat was one of the five seats of Purvanchal in which the party failed to penetrate the political maze in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. This is the reason why BJP recruited Dhananjay Singh.

Dhananjay may not be contesting the elections, but he is the one who is making a splash on the stage of BJP candidate Kripashankar Singh. Kripashankar is also a seasoned player, he has been the Home Minister of Maharashtra, he has handed over the command of the elections to Dhananjay.

Now the election has become difficult for BSP’s sitting MP Shyam Singh Yadav. He got 5.21 lakh votes in the 2019 elections. At that time he faced competition only from BJP. Akhilesh played a big gamble by fielding Babu Singh Kushwaha, who was accused in the NRHM scam, from Jaunpur seat.

14% Muslim and Yadav voters are already with SP. There has been an attempt to woo voters of other backward castes including Maurya, Shakya and Kushwaha of Jaunpur. But due to Dhananjay Singh, the scales seem to be in favour of BJP.

After talking to experts and the public, I understood 3 things…

BJP faced loss when Srikala Reddy contested the elections. Now the equations have changed, Dhananjay is the first choice of the Thakur fraternity. Now he is not in the elections, so BJP seems to be getting votes. BSP’s Shyam Singh Yadav is causing harm to SP.
For Bahubali Dhananjay Singh, the election is based on credibility. Despite his support, if BJP’s Kripa Shankar loses, questions will be raised on Dhananjay’s own vote bank.
The public is accusing BJP and SP candidates of being outsiders. BJP’s Kripashankar is a resident of Jaunpur, but has always lived in Mumbai. SP’s Babu Singh Kushwaha also has no connection with Jaunpur.

Understand caste equation from graphics…

In the last 3 Lok Sabha elections, BJP’s vote increased by 23% and BSP’s by 10%
BJP has rapidly strengthened its political base in Jaunpur. In the last 3 elections, BJP’s vote share has increased by 23%. In the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, BJP candidate Seema got only 18% votes. Dhananjay Singh had won the election on BSP ticket. He got 3.02 lakh votes. SP’s Paras Nath got 2.22 lakh votes.

BSP’s vote bank in Jaunpur also increased by 10.48% vote share in 3 elections. BSP fought the 2019 elections in alliance with SP. Shyam Singh Yadav got 5 lakh votes, which was 50.08% of the total polling.

Public opinion…

People said- BJP is fighting strongly, BSP is not in the scene.
Who is winning in Jaunpur, who is losing? To know this we reached TD College in the city. Political discussion was seen taking place at the tea stall near the main gate. Retired teacher Raj Bahadur Singh says- Bulldozers ran on mafia houses. That’s why the public is happy. The entire election is being fought on the face of Modi-Yogi. No one is even questioning the candidate.

Anand Singh, who calls himself a social worker, says – Local issues are not working. Ram Mandir has been built, Kashi Vishwanath Dham has been decorated. People are liking BJP for this reason too. Moving ahead, we met Rameshwar Dayal. He says – When Srikala Reddy contested the elections, about 50% Thakurs would vote for her, now she is not contesting the elections, so the votes of Thakur community are going to BJP. If Srikala had contested the elections from any other party or as an independent, she would have still got good votes.

After this we got Mohammad Siraj. What is the atmosphere of the elections? In response he says- If Shrikala had contested the elections, she could have won. He would have got the votes of Thakur and some Muslim sections, but now Thakur votes are going towards BJP.

The Muslim who likes Dhananjay Singh is now seen voting for SP. Both the parties are benefiting from Srikala not contesting the elections. After Shyam Singh Yadav becoming candidate from BSP, some Yadavs are also shifting from SP.

Opinion of political experts

Will BJP benefit after Dhananjay’s support in Jaunpur? Senior journalist Ramji Jaiswal says- Two former ministers are contesting elections face to face in Jaunpur. Both are facing the siege of being outside candidates. BJP’s Kripashankar’s workplace has been Maharashtra. SP’s Babu Singh Kushwaha is also raising the issue of casteism among the people.

80-85% Muslim voters are seen supporting SP-Congress. Because they feel that the ruling party targets them. SP is getting fixed votes of Yadav community. If Yadav-Muslim and Maurya votes unite, then SP is seen ahead. Current MP Shyam Singh Yadav may be contesting the election on BSP ticket, but he is not seen in the scene.

What do caste equations say in Jaunpur elections?
Political expert Anand Yadav says- In the 2014 and then 2019 elections, the public was with Modi on the basis of nationalism. But this wave is not there in the 2024 elections. The nature of the voter has changed. Casteism is always prevalent in elections. Political leaders only give speeches on the issue of development. In the secret, the public votes on the basis of caste and religion. There is no issue in this election noise. Neither the candidates nor the leaders are talking about this, nor the voters are concerned with development, the votes will be cast only on the basis of casteism.