BJP banks on Chaudhary to woo back Kurmis, bolster coordination with govt | Lucknow News

Lucknow: There could have been difference in opinions on the name of the new UP BJP chief, but all the stakeholders — from members of UP govt to BJP core group to RSS — were unanimous on two points: one, the new pick should be from OBC category and two, preferably a Kurmi, a party insider told TOI. His appointment will come up with many positives and a few challenges for the party in UP.Chaudhary, an OBC, is being pitted as BJP’s best bet to counter Akhilesh Yadav’ PDA narrative, which eroded saffron party’s vote base in 2024 Lok Sabha polls.Since 2024 LS polls, among many concerns for BJP has been the dent in its Kurmi votes in sizable numbers. Kurmi constitute around 7% of voters, the maximum after Yadavs, in the OBC category. With UP assembly elections due in the first quarter of 2027, the appointment of Chaudhary is being seen as party’s direct bid to woo back Kurmis across the state.Will Chaudhary’s election as BJP chief arrest the shift in Kurmi votes in favour of the BJP or will he have mass appeal among Kurmis pan-UP is a big question as Kurmis favour different leaders in different regions. This has been the trend in UP over the past over three decades, unlike Bihar where Kurmis still see Nitish Kumar as their statewide leader.Late Beni Prasad Varma was the last of the Kurmi leaders who was seen as one having most influence among his community than any other leader. Even he was limited to primarily Awadh region. After him, leaders like BJP’s Om Prakash Singh and Vinay Katiyar have been limited to either one Lok Sabha constituency, district or at most three to four districts.Second major concern for the BJP during Lok Sabha polls had been lack of coordination between the organisation and UP govt. Chaudhary, considered close to Defence minister and Lucknow MP Rajnath Singh, will have a task cut out for him to ensure proper coordination between the organisation and govt as the same will have a cascading impact till ward level party workers. Any gaps in coordination at any level ahead of assembly polls could impact the BJP as seen during the last LS polls.Chaudhary, who regards former BJP chief Ramapati Ram Tripathi as his political guru, had tasted defeat only once in Lok Sabha elections in 2009. Interestingly, before Chaudhary, Vinay Katiyar, Om Prakash Singh and Swatantra Dev Singh, all Kurmi leaders, have been UP BJP chief. Jal shakti minister Swatantra Dev Singh was believed to be in the race for the post even this time, but Chaudhary emerged as the favourite over Singh, who also was one of his proposers on Friday.Third and last, Chaudhary, who has never been into organisation politics, will have to learn its nuances as quickly as possible. As a support, the party might also bring a seasoned organisation man, who could not only be well versed with the length and breadth of the state but also has first hand experience of UP’s political nitty-gritty as the state in charge before the party enters into election mode.