Ending ‘mafias’ and ‘mafia raj’ topped the Lok Sabha election pitches of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and other BJP heavyweights who campaigned hard in the Purvanchal region, which comprises 27 seats. Of these, 14 saw polling in the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha elections on May 25, while the remaining 13 seats will vote in the seventh and final phase on June 1.
The 14 seats that voted on May 25 are Sultanpur, Pratapgarh, Phulpur, Allahabad, Ambedkarnagar, Shrawasti, Dumariyaganj, Basti, Sant Kabir Nagar, Lalganj (SC), Azamgarh, Jaunpur, Machhlishahr (SC), and Bhadohi.
Among the remaining 13 seats that will vote on June 1 is the high-profile Varanasi constituency, where PM Modi is contesting from for the third time, and Yogi Adityanath’s home turf Gorakhpur, where the BJP has fielded actor-politician Ravi Kishan. Other Purvanchal seats voting on June 1 are Maharajganj, Kushinagar, Deoria, Bansgaon, Ghosi, Salempur, Ballia, Ghazipur, Chandaulii, Mirzapur and Robertsganj.
The Final Push
The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance had won 20 seats in the Purvanchal region in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. This time, the BJP pressed all its heavyweights into action here with PM Modi and CM Yogi leading the charge with nine and 28 rallies, respectively, in Purvanchal, including the seats that are yet to vote. In public meetings, road shows and rallies across eastern UP, the leaders headlined their speeches with the state government’s crackdown on ‘mafia’, alleging that their rivals’ record on the same has been dismal.
“Not just Mirzapur, the Samajwadi Party government had ruined the image of entire Purvanchal. They made Purvanchal a safe haven for the ‘mafias’ and created an environment of fear among the people. During the SP government, the ‘mafias’ were seen as the basis of vote banks. But things have changed under Yogi ji’s regime. Initially, people used to shiver in fear and now Yogi ji’s bulldozer and impeccable law and order is giving shivers to the ‘mafias’,” said PM Modi at a rally in Mirzapur.
In Ghosi, the PM accused the Samajwadi Party of neglecting Purvanchal and turning it into a “region of mafia, poverty and helplessness”.
Union Home Minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah also hailed Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for improving law and order in the state. “At one time, the entire UP was surrounded by ‘mafia’ and mosquitoes. Our Yogi Adityanath has eliminated both mosquitoes and the ‘mafia’. By maintaining cleanliness, he eliminated mosquitoes and he has a style with which he eliminated the ‘mafias’ as well,” said Amit Shah in Deoria.
Yogi Adityanath used the same analogy as Amit Shah in Gorakhpur’s Belwar on Tuesday. “Gorakhpur was once known for mosquitoes and ‘mafias’. Now it is known for development. We have finished the ‘mafias’ and the mosquitoes from UP.”
Will the ‘Mafia’ Pitch Work?
The big question is whether the anti-mafia pitch will resonate with the masses especially when the INDIA bloc is focussing on livelihood issues like unemployment and exam paper leaks.
According to political analyst Manoj Singh, who hails from Gorakhpur district, the mosquito pitch may have worked better than the anti-mafia pitch. “The Yogi Adityanath government did a wonderful job when it comes to development in Purvanchal districts. People hailed the government for its prompt measures to curb encephalitis. It was said “Yogi ji ne machhar khatam kar diye“, but the other part of the slogan on ‘mafia’ has unfortunately failed to set the narrative among the people,” he said.
“The anti-mafia pitch may fail to set the narrative following recent political developments wherein Amit Shah held a meeting with ‘bahubali’ Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya and mafia-politician Dhananjay Singh’s wife. Later, Dhananjay, who is an influential figure in Jaunpur, announced his support to the BJP. Another development is the induction of mafia-politician Abhay Singh, the rebel Samajwadi Party MLA who cross-voted during Rajya Sabha elections into the saffron party,” Singh pointed out.
In the era of social media, people are aware of the mismatch between words and action, said Singh. The political analyst added that the INDIA bloc, meanwhile, seems to be gaining popularity in the region, especially among the youth.
2019 Recap
Of the 14 seats in Purvanchal region that voted in the sixth phase of elections, nine were held by the BJP in the outgoing Lok Sabha — Sultanpur, Pratapgarh, Phulpur, Allahabad, Domariyaganj, Basti, Sant Kabir Nagar, Machhlishahr (SC), and Bhadohi seats. The BSP had bagged four seats in 2019 — Ambedkarnagar, Shrawasti, Lalganj and Jaunpur. The SP had managed to retain Azamgarh, but lost it in the 2022 bypolls. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP had bagged 13 of these 14 Purvanchal seats, while the SP had won Azamgarh.
Of the remaining 13 seats, the NDA had bagged 11 in 2019. The BJP alone won nine of these seats — bagged Varanasi, Maharajganj, Gorakhpur, Kushinagar, Deoria, Bansgaon, Salempur, Ballia and Chandauli. Its ally Apna Dal (S), led by Anupriya Patel, bagged two seats — Mirzapur and Robertsganj. Samajwadi Party and Congress had failed to open their account in these seats. The (BSP), which had contested the election in alliance with the SP, bagged two seats — Ghosi and Ghazipur.
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