The new M-Y factor in Uttar Pradesh

Political experts accept that it was the “M-Y factor” that worked for the Bharatiya Janata Party this time around in Uttar Pradesh. This M-Y factor beat the huge anti-incumbency against the BJp government and ensured its return to power.

Well, this ‘M-Y’ is certainly not the Muslim-Yadav combination of the Samajwadi Party, but the Modi-Yogi jodi. Yogi Adityanath’s aggressive Hindutva combined with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pro-development image did the trick for the BJP, say political observers.

BJP had its fingers on the pulse of the masses when it formulated its strategy. It knew that law and order was a big issue in UP politics. Therefore, during the election campaign, it attacked Samajwadi Party over the poor law and order situation during Akhilesh Yadav’s tenure.

Secondly, the “bulldozer baba’’ jibe made by the Samajwadi Party against Adityanath seems to have backfired. The BJP projected bulldozers as an affirmation of its government’s “tough stand on criminals” and “high on development” image.

Thirdly, the BJP was able to convince people that the “double engine ki sarkar” would be more beneficial for Uttar Pradesh. Fourthly, BJP even made Operation Ganga and the evacuation of Indian students from Ukrain a major poll issue as both Modi and Yogi claiming that India managed to safely evacuate its citizens stranded in warhit Ukraine.

UP BJP chief Swatantra Dev said, “People have reposed faith in the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath. It’s a mandate against caste and dynastic politics. It’s a mandate for the continuance of the good governance and pro-poor focus that UP witnessed for five years.”

BJP vice-president Vijay bahadur Pathak cannot stop waxing eloquent about the BJP turning Uttar Pradesh into ‘religious tourism hub’ of the country. “The authorities have already worked on developing religious sites and increasing facilities for the devotees over the past five years. The Yogi government, in its first term itself, gave priority to the development of the religious sector,” he said.

The obsession with religion and religious tourism are obvious in the creation of pilgrimage centres at Vrindavan, Nandgaon, Govardhan, Gokul, Baldev and Radhakund.

A Tourist Facilitation Centre, Geeta Research Institute and Auditorium, construction of Annapurna Bhawan is being undertaken in Vrindavan, Jubilee Park in Mathura, Barsana and Nandgaon are also being developed for tourist facilities. But what about development and welfare of the people? There is very little coming from either government or party on this score as yet.

Yogi Adityanath has created history of sorts by becoming the first chief minister in more than three decades to return to office for a second continuous term. This, despite the poor state of public health when unaccounted people died of covid. Sweeping the agony of the people under the carpet, BJP succeeded in keeping the dialogue focused on Hindutva in public.

“With the opposition in disarray, and with the support of a fervent Hindu base, Adityanath’s election victory is seen as evidence that BJP is able to shift the electorate away from India’s basic tenet of secularism,” Manoj Bhadra, a political analyst said.

He said the victory in UP has come despite the much-criticized handling of Covid-19, high unemployment, and anger over farm reforms that even forced Prime Minister Narendra Modi to repeal these laws last year.

Despite predictions of a wave against the BJP, the saffron party claimed free distribution of rations, a crackdown on crime, and its popularity among the Hindu majority reinforced by the construction of the Ram temple were its USP at these elections.

“These issues seem to have touched the hearts of a majority of Hindus in the state reinforcing the fear that the victory will further embolden the BJP’s Hindutva politics,” Dr Mamindra Chaudhry, a political analyst said.

Despite such high claims the Yogi government faces tough challenges which include controlling the stray cattle menace as even PM Modi had said that BJP would find a reasonable solution to this menace if it returns to power. Another issue would be the restoration of the old pension scheme and giving free electricity to the farm sector.

“The biggest challenge for the government would be creation of jobs. The BJP has claimed that it would give 5 crore jobs to the youth. The party is silent about where these jobs will come from,” Bhadra said.

The government spokesman said that the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has set an ambitious target to fulfill as many as 20,000 vacant posts in government departments and create self-employment opportunities for over 50,000 people in the state in first 100 days. “Yogi has instructed all the departments to prepare the complete details of the vacant posts in their department and place them before him. So that people can be given jobs,” the spokesman said.

Will Yogi really achieve that or will it be an empty promise like Modi's two crore jobs in 2014? As we all know by now, it matters not.

(This was first published in National Herald on Sunday)