The Akhilesh Yadav regime has failed. The political vacuum created with the fall of the BSP Government in Uttar Pradesh is being filled by the BJP. Narendra Modi’s successful rallies across the State are a pointer to that
The Samajwadi Party finds itself at a crossroads. It is not because of the opposition parties but due its own leaders and bureaucrats who have from time to time put the Government in a tight spot with their statements. Besides, there are instances when senior leaders of the Samajwadi Party have themselves raised questions about governance and have given sermons to Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav to improve the situation. This has happened because of the failure of the State regime to deliver despite being in power for two years now.
A wily politician like Mulayam Singh Yadav knows that this lok Sabha election will be a do-or-die battle for the Samajwadi Party. The way the political mood is swinging in this crucial politically-sensitive State, it could be a requiem for his political ambitions if people desert his party and opt for the BJP, which has emerged as the main contender.
The Samajwadi Party leadership knows that time is running out for them. What happened in Muzaffarnagar post-communal riots and the way the Government handled the situation has given a bad name to Mr Akhilesh Yadav. What made the situation worse was when the senior Yadav said that only BJP and Congress agents live in the refugee camps, and a senior bureaucrat declared that no one dies of cold. The anger spilled on the road as the Muslims, who form the main chunk of votes, questioned the State Government’s sincerity in protecting their rights.
The Samajwadi Party went into damage control. It not only showed its empathy towards riot victims but also asked its workers not to indulge in hooliganism. The leadership also knows that the Government carries the tag of a party of goondas. Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav minced no words when he asked workers and leaders to shun goondagardi as it gave a bad name to the Government as well as to the party.
Unexpectedly, he asked them to take lessons in discipline from the BJP’s workers. Because of the BJP’s disciplined conduct, he added, the party had retained power in three States. The plainspeak does not end here. Party’s national general secretary Ram Gopal Yadav said in a public meeting in Saifai that, if the Government did not improve its working and the law and order situation, it would be difficult for the Samajwadi Party to win in the lok Sabha election. The barbs were pointed towards some Ministers who have unleashed terror and were tormenting people.
When Mr Ram Gopal Yadav was admonishing Ministers of Samajwadi Party Government, the Chief Minister was on the dais and probably feeling the heat. Another senior leader, Mr Shivpal Singh Yadav, blamed ‘intruders’, who had joined the Samajwadi Party after it came to power, as the main culprits. He advised Mr Akhilesh Yadav to throw them out of the party.
“These intruders are bringing a bad name to the party”, Mr Shivpal Singh Yadav thundered. The Chief Minister listened to him silently, probably pondering over the options he has before him. During the State Assembly election, the campaign was organised and monitored by the youth brigade of the party. Its members had marched with him step by step, they had actively taken part in cycle yatras when he covered the length and breadth of the State. They had even braved police lathis in lucknow. Now that time has come for them to reap the political harvest, senior leaders are advising restraint.
The dilemma that Mr Akhilesh Yadav finds himself is not very difficult to fathom. He tried his best to adjust these youth leaders in the party organisation. Some of them were even given red beacons after elevating them to the posts of chairpersons of State-run organisations — thus giving them the status of a Minister of State. But the High Court spoiled Mr Akhilesh Yadav’s dream. The lal battis were withdrawn and these chairpersons were reduced to mere commoners.
What is happening in Uttar Pradesh is not unexpected. Ever since the Samajwadi Party came to power, there was fear of increase in goondaism by the party workers. People have seen the previous regimes of Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav when, drunk on power, party workers had grabbed property and made the police to dance to their tune. But there was hope this time. A young and highly educated leader had taken over the reins of the State. People believed that he had a new vision and hoped that he would take the State to a new high.
The hopes were dashed. The Government has failed to perform. The political vacuum that was created with the fall of the BSP’s Government is being filled by the BJP, which is evident by the successful rallies that Mr Narendra Modi has conducted across the State. Samajwadi Party leaders know that the BJP is now no pushover. With SP workers going berserk and the BJP gaining ground, the State regime is in for more trouble.
