Impact of BJP’s Yadav CM pick in Madhya Pradesh likely to be felt in UP, Bihar
Madhya Pradesh chief minister-designate Mohan Yadav’s wife is from Sultanpur in Uttar Pradesh and his father-in-law lives there
As soon as the Bharatiya Janata Party yet again caught the political pundits unaware, this time picking party lawmaker Mohan Yadav as chief minister in Madhya Pradesh, there was near unanimity that the impact of the decision won’t remain limited to the CM-designate’s parent state.
Those analysing the political takeaway of the move said that the impact of the decision would also be felt in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh as well as Bihar. The two states with a sizeable Yadav population have 120 Lok Sabha seats.
Mohan Yadav’s wife Seema, who too has a Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) background, hails from Uttar Pradesh. Mohan Yadav had visited the state with his wife to meet his ailing father-in-law Brahmdeen Yadav, 96, in Sultanpur in August 2022.
“I want both UP and MP to develop,” said Brahmdeen on the phone from Sultanpur.
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In the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly polls, the BJP belied predictions of Samajwadi Party’s resurgence by breaching the Yadav belt. Now with the Madhya Pradesh CM-designate’s UP-connect, the BJP would surely look to step up the offensive ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in the most populous state where Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party is the BJP’s biggest opposition.
“It’s true that Mulayam Singh Yadav’s clan in Uttar Pradesh and Lalu Yadav’s in Bihar are so far the two biggest political families whom Yadavs have largely been loyal to. By propping up a Yadav face in MP, it is clear that the BJP is now showcasing intent to dismantle the old notions,” a senior Uttar Pradesh BJP functionary said.
“It’s a great decision and though BJP doesn’t believe in caste politics, the move would now ground the party that proudly claims Yadav loyalty,” said Uttar Pradesh minister Girish Yadav, the lone Yadav minister in the Yogi 2.0 government.
The BJP has six Yadav lawmakers -- two each as MLAs, MLCs and Rajya Sabha members from UP.
For a hat-trick of wins at the Centre, the BJP is again hugely relying on the party-ruled Uttar Pradesh where Yadavs are the most dominant OBC bloc.
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The nearly 9% Yadavs in Uttar Pradesh have a near decisive say in many Lok Sabha constituencies including Etawah, Badaun, Mainpuri, Firozabad, Etawah, Mainpuri, Faizabad, Sant Kabir Nagar, Ballia, Jaunpur, and Azamgarh. In June 2022, the BJP’s Dinesh Lal Yadav ‘Nirahau’ won Azamgarh in the Lok Sabha by-polls after SP chief Akhilesh Yadav vacated the seat.
“Mohanji is also quite active in the state’s wrestling associations, something that Akhilesh’s father and political stalwart Mulayam Singh Yadav used to do,” a BJP leader said.
Soon after BJP’s spectacular consecutive win in Uttar Pradesh elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had revealed the BJP’s Yadav focus for 2024 Lok Sabha polls when he had addressed an event virtually to mark the 10th death anniversary of Chaudhary Harmohan Singh Yadav, a former MP and close associate of Mulayam Singh Yadav. Harmohan was also the founder of the Yadav Mahasabha and his grandson Mohit Yadav is now with the BJP.
In the 2022 UP assembly polls, the BJP also won over Mulayam’s daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav.