Vinay Shankar Tiwari, former BSP MLA from Chilupar assembly seat in Gorakhpur, who recently switched to Samajwadi Party and son of strongman and stalwart of Purvanchal politics Hari Shankar Tiwari, said in an exclusive interview with News18.com that Brahmins The discontent is not limited to Purvanchal but is evident throughout Uttar Pradesh as the BJP government has done nothing for the community. Edited excerpt:
After joining Samajwadi Party with another big Brahmin leader Rakesh Pandey, do you think this will affect the Brahmin voters of Purvanchal region of the state?
If we look at the current situation of the Bharatiya Janata Party, there is a stampede here. For example, we joined the Samajwadi Party on 12 December, and after five or six days the central leadership of the BJP in Delhi called all its Brahmin leaders and held a meeting in which they expressed their concern over the discontent among Brahmin voters. The BJP had warned its leaders about Brahmin voters turning to the Samajwadi Party… A person present at that meeting told me that they said there that they had no authority even in local matters in the last five years and how they People will face now. His own leaders like Laxmikant Bajpai were sidelined in the party. This time he has not been given a ticket. BJP has been adopting double standards with Brahmins. They only ask for the votes of brahmins
But what about the deputy chief minister of the Brahmin community in the BJP government?
This is welcome, but then there are the Bikru scandal, the Ankur Shukla incident of Gorakhpur, the Kabir Tiwari incident in Basti, the Vivek Tiwari case and even the murder of a Hindu Sabha leader in Lucknow. Atrocities and crimes against Brahmins are rampant across the state. The Brahmins have suffered the most in this government as compared to the previous governments.
Any other specific issue why do you think there is Brahmin discontent against the BJP?
This government did nothing for the brahmins. Even top sage Shankaracharya Vasudevananda Saraswati had said in the chief minister’s program that the government did nothing for the Brahmins. BJP only talks about Brahmins for votes and nothing else. When there is a question of giving employment to Brahmins, whenever there is a question of development of Sanskrit language, the BJP disappears from the scene. When you don’t listen to the problems and problems faced by someone, it is certain that that person will be disillusioned with you. Today Brahmins have left BJP.
But Brahmins are also considered the traditional voters of BJP…
If you do a survey anywhere in the state, you will come to know that Brahmins are leaving the BJP. It is true that the community has stood firmly with the BJP for many years, but had it not left the BJP, the party’s central leadership would not have expressed concern. The central leadership of the BJP had called an important meeting on this issue and it was covered in newspapers and social media. The central leadership of BJP is fed up with the ‘Thakurism’ in the state. It’s not about Hindutva anymore, it’s about ‘Thakurwad’ here in UP. Brahmins now understand very well that things are not in their favor in BJP and hence they are now turning to Samajwadi Party.
So will we see Brahmin vs Thakur fight in Purvanchal this time?
This issue is being made by the government by adopting double standards towards Brahmins. The punishment for a Brahmin is different from the punishment for a Rajput for the same offence. This is a direct and clear insult to Brahmins.
So what will the Samajwadi Party do for Brahmins if it comes to power?
We will ensure education and employment opportunities for them. We will also work for the development of Sanskrit language. We will sit and talk to the leaders of the Brahmin community on their problems and solve them at the earliest.
How do you take CM Yogi’s 80 vs 20 statement? Do you see this as an attempt to disguise polarization?
CM has rightly said that this election is 80 vs 20, but 80% share is against BJP and only 20% is with BJP. Even that 20% is not clear yet because you are seeing a stampede like situation in BJP with cabinet ministers, MLAs queuing up to exit the party. The condition of BJP is so bad today that the Samajwadi Party had to clearly say that now we cannot take any more defectors. Have you ever seen a situation when a party had to say that they cannot include more people? There was a long list of BJP leaders willing to join the Samajwadi Party.
What disillusioned you with the BSP after almost completing your term as a BSP MLA?
It did not happen overnight and I am not the only one who left BSP. In 2017, a total of 19 people became MLAs on BSP tickets, of which only three are with the party now; 16 others have left the party. So that means there must be a shortage on the part of the leadership. If leaders do not have access and cannot meet their top leadership then it is not good for any political party.
What are your views on Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath contesting from Gorakhpur (Sadar) seat?
Samajwadi Party is going to win more than 300 seats this time in the UP assembly elections.
But your leadership is saying 400 seats…
If we get 400 seats then nothing better than this, but I am sure we will cross 300 seats in any case. Today when CM has not got support from anywhere, he must have thought that it is safe for him to contest from his hometown. People are fed up with the law and order situation, arrogance, inflation and atrocities on weaker sections of the society. Even the MLAs-MPs are not being listened to. In the times of covid, everyone saw dead bodies floating in the Ganges, people were forced to bury the dead as they did not get wood for the last rites…
So how are you running a digital and door-to-door campaign at a time when large gatherings have been banned by the Election Commission due to COVID?
Campaigning is definitely not easy for people like us who are in rural areas and have to face internet and connectivity issues at times. We cannot rely too much on digital campaigns and currently we are focusing more on door-to-door campaigns. According to the guidelines of the Election Commission, we are roaming from village to village in small groups of three to four people. At the same time, BJP was scared of the voting and support for Akhilesh ji’s Vijay Rath Yatra. On the other hand, the BJP misused the government machinery by bringing people working under the MGNREGA scheme as crowds for the meetings, as well as the government teachers were also being harassed and pressured. But Akhilesh could not match Yadav. He then eventually resorted to banning all rallies through the Election Commission. People have understood all the dirty tricks of BJP today and the results of March 10 will bring change in the state.
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