Western UP equation may not favour BJP this time in general elections

• Rajputs hold a massive Mahapanchayat in Saharanpur, which is causing ripples within the BJP
• The decison of BJP replacing General VK Singh (retd) with Atul Kumar Garg in Ghaziabad seems to have caused an outrage
• This time in Western UP the vote division along cast lines may work in favour the BJP

With less than 10 days left for the Lok Sabha elections, the BJP is witnessing troubling signs in western Uttar Pradesh, a region where it won the majority of seats in the last decade due to a consolidated Hindu vote. Situations are now changing rapidly in the region, with some dominant castes showing their dissent openly and calling their communities to boycott the BJP. These dominant castes, including the Rajputs, Tyagis and Sainis, are dissatisfied with their "lesser representation" in western Uttar Pradesh.

On April 7, the Rajputs held a massive Mahapanchayat in Saharanpur, which created ruffles within the BJP. The community is irked over several issues, including lesser Lok Sabha tickets despite having a sizeable population of nearly 10 per cent in western Uttar Pradesh. The BJP's decision to replace General (retd) VK Singh with Atul Kumar Garg in Ghaziabad triggered outrage in the community as 10 per cent of the voters in western Uttar Pradesh were left with one party ticket of Moradabad.Similarly, the Tyagi and Saini communities are holding panchayats in many places against the BJP.The constituency-wise vote share will not go in the BJP's favour if their vote is divided along the caste lines. We analyse the caste equation in western Uttar Pradesh and how it can be troublesome for the BJP in upcoming election

The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has fielded Majid Ali, who belongs to the Muslim Gada community, from Saharanpur. The Opposition INDIA bloc has given a ticket to Imran Masud, who has been holding meetings with the disgruntled Rajput community lately.

For the BJP, Raghav Lakhanpal, who is from the Sharma-Brahmin community, will contest for the third consecutive time.The massive April 7 rally of the Rajput community in Saharanpur opened new gates of a caste-based political alliance in western Uttar Pradesh.