Uttar Pradesh Polls Phase 1 Diary: Anecdotes from the NCR seats

Confessions of a drunken cop

Booze is the eternal truth serum. A UP Police constable was seen giving some “deep election analysis” to a visibly bored crowd at a Sahibabad tea stall. When this reporter joined the motley crowd, one of them whispered: “He’s drunk.” Ironically, the cop was apparently part of the police team that raided a Sahibabad assembly candidate’s office and allegedly seized liquor. At the tea stall, he spilled the beans on who tipped off the police—the rival BJP candidate, who in turn was alerted by an RSS activist. At that point, the drunken cop became emotional and started confessing about his ‘Sangh’ links. Meanwhile the accused candidate claims that he was away campaigning and not even aware of any booze in his office, which he alleged was seized from a neighbouring site. One wonders, however, whether the cop had slipped a bottle or two into his bag after the raid.

Boycott call in Kavinagar, Ghaziabad

The residents of Mahagunpuram Society in Ghaziabad’s Kavinagar are a distraught lot. They have boycotted the polls as a mark of protest. Reason: A loss of faith in the system. One of the residents, who didn’t want to be named, said: “There’s increased lawlessness in the area. We are scared.” A few days back, some goons apparently barged into the society and beat up the guards. They did the same again a couple of days back. The repeated complaints of the residents to the police and the politicians fell on deaf ears. “None of them have done anything about it so far. All politicians and political parties are the same,” he shrugged. So, how would boycotting the polls help? “I don’t know,” was the reply. Such helplessness among citizens and the boycott call does not bode well for our democracy.

Cycle racing ahead

The BSP may have won four of the five assembly seats in Ghaziabad district in 2012, but seems to be struggling to repeat its performance this time around. It faces anti-incumbency with the people complaining about BSP legislators. Even the incumbent Sahibabad legislator Amarpal Sharma, who is widely seen as having a good chance of winning again, has defected from the BSP to the Congress. While the BJP—which won the Ghaziabad Lok Sabha seat in 2014—is a strong contender, it is the Samajwadi Party-Congress coalition that appears to be riding ahead. “Akhilesh’s ‘cycle’ (the SP poll symbol) has a good chance this time,” says a local politician. However, an elderly man summed up the current scenario best with his rustic wit: “The elephant (BSP symbol) is heavy and thus slow; while the cycle is light. With a strong push from the hand (Congress symbol), the cycle will speed ahead this election.”

‘Phool, hathi aur cycle’

BJP had put to rest its image of being largely an urban party after its win all across Uttar Pradesh in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections—or at least that’s what it seemed. By the 2017 assembly polls, however, it looks like it’s getting its old image back. As one passed by the urban polling booths in Vasundhara, Vaishali and Indirapuram in Ghaziabad, BJP polling agents were seen in big numbers and also upbeat on the poll outcome. The scene though changed as one stepped into Khoda village, which has about 1.5 lakh registered voters. Here, the BJP supporters were scarce and outnumbered by the SP-Congress and BSP workers. When asked why it was so, a BSP supporter quipped: “Ameeron ka phool, gareebon ka hathi. Beech walon ne ki cycle ki sawari.” Translated: “The rich go with the flower (BJP), the poor with the elephant. The others in the middle are riding the cycle.”

Western UP: A BJP nightmare?

Contrary to the BJP’s claims, western UP seems to have slipped out from between its fingers. The Jats, Muslims and Dalits—who make up almost 65-70% of the total populace here—seem to have overwhelmingly voted against the BJP. Even BSP chief Mayawati may have reasons to worry; though this region is generally considered a BSP stronghold, her heavy betting on the Muslim vote may not have paid off. Ground reports suggest that the Muslim votes have primarily shifted towards the SP-Congress alliance in the last two days. What seems to have helped the alliance gain favour is the perception that SP-Congress alliance had a strong chance of forming the next government, not BSP. Riyaz, a scrap dealer, says all the six voters in his family pressed the EVM button for the alliance. “We know it will form the government in Lucknow. We didn’t want our vote to be wasted,” he said.