New Delhi: A meeting of the Delhi BJP where a presentation on voter composition sought to downplay the number of Purvanchali voters in the Capital and thus reduce their “influence”, and which also did away with the term “Purvanchal”, has irked a section of Purvanchali leaders, ThePrint has learnt. It has further creating rumblings within the party ahead of the Delhi assembly polls due next year.

The term “Purvanchal” is used to refer to people from eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand.

At the meeting, sources said, a presentation was made on voter composition in the national capital as they sought to discuss the strategy to regain power in Delhi.

“During the meeting, while the percentage of Purvanchali voters was reduced ‘substantially’, the term Purvanchali was also not used,” a senior BJP leader told ThePrint.

“In the presentation, it was pointed out that people from UP constitute 17 percent of people in Delhi and those from Bihar make up 6.59 percent, while locals make up over 56 percent. Objection was raised over this presentation and the fact that the term ‘Purvanchal’ was not used. At the same time, it was also pointed out that there is no one who is essentially a local, because at some point of time everyone migrated to Delhi. People from Purvanchal are as much a part of Delhi as Punjabis,” said a party functionary, requesting anonymity.

Sources said that while the issue was raised at the meeting, it was pointed out that the presentation was only aimed for internal consumption to understand the percentage of voters from various states who make up the Purvanchali bloc.

During the meeting, “inaccuracy” of the data was also pointed out, and the sources said the central leadership has conveyed that a segregation among Purvanchali voters should not be done.

“The term Purvanchali in Delhi refers to people from eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand. For our own understanding, we may divide them into states but overall they should be seen as one entity,” said the senior BJP leader.

According to sources, BJP MP Manoj Tiwari had also raised the issue in the meeting and had pointed out that Purvanchal voters should not be split as per the state they originally hail from. “Tiwari who is one of the key Purvanchal faces of the BJP has pointed out that such segregation based on states will damage the party,” said a source. 

BJP’s central leadership, which has been apprised of the matter, has said the party will give the community “greater representation” in the coming days to correct this perception, sources said.

“The Haryanvi-Punjabi dominated politics in Delhi over a period of time has shifted towards the Purvanchali voters and the party is aware of that. The importance of Purvanchali voters can’t be ruled out and whatever happened during that meeting was more of an oversight. It is important to point out that every community is important to the BJP, whether it is Punjabi, baniya, etc,” said the senior BJP leader.

Speaking to ThePrint, Santosh Ojha, chief of the Purvanchal Morcha of the Delhi BJP, said that at least in 30-odd assembly constituencies, the community acts as a deciding factor.

He also asserted that the term “Purvanchal” had not been dropped by the party. “The fact that I am the head of the Purvanchal Morcha shows that it is very much in place,” he added.

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‘Community feels neglected’

The controversy has erupted at a time when the BJP is trying to draw the Purvanchali community by ramping up its outreach ahead of Chhath Puja, a significant festival for the community.

Both the ruling AAP and the rival BJP in Delhi have made a bid to win over the community by announcing a slew of measures before Chhath next month and the assembly polls next year.

Delhi BJP leaders are concerned about the fact any perceived “mistreatment” being meted out to people from Purvanchal, including the party leaders, could be used by the AAP to its advantage.

“Our overall management is not good. Look at the AAP, which has given representation to the community through ministers such as Gopal Rai and MLAs such as Sanjeev Jha, Rituraj Jha, Dilip Pandey, Durgesh Pathak, among others. They have developed key leaders hailing from UP and Bihar, which is why the Purvanchali voter has shifted towards them,” said a second BJP leader.

The leader pointed out that even as the Delhi unit of the BJP was “ignoring” the community, the AAP-led Delhi government had announced that it would construct around 1,000 “model ghats” for Chhath Puja across the Capital.

“Why is it that we can name so many people (from Purvanchal community) within the AAP, and in the Delhi BJP, the only few names that come to our mind are those of Manoj Tiwari who is now an MP and MLA Abhay Verma. Already, we have a Punjabi state president and even the minister from Delhi is a Punjabi. Naturally, the community feels neglected and it can prove costly during the elections,” he added.

In Delhi, the BJP has one MLA, Abhay Verma from Laxmi Nagar, who represents the Purvanchali community while the AAP has around 12 MLAs who represent the community.

There are at least 30 assembly constituencies that are dominated by migrants from UP and Bihar, including Burari, Adarsh Nagar, Wazirpur, Badarpur and Seelampur.

“We have been reaching out to the community, which has been ignored by (Delhi’s ruling) AAP. For the Chhath festival, we are inspecting ghats and ensuring that devotees don’t face any problem,” Ojha said.

(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)

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