WILL BSP'S RESERVATION PLANK PAY OFF

The by-election of 1O assembly seats in UP may be another test case of new strategy of BSP politics

- BADRI NARAYAN

The result of 2024 parliamentary election may be read in multiple ways. First of all, it is being read as sign and indication of a' new churning' which is taking place in the society and politics of the country. Secondly, this result also revealed that political mood of the public is always unpredictable by its nature. It gives shock to the psephologists and political analysts time to time. This kind of public mood brings ups and downs in the political scene of the country I am going to tell a story of a political party-named Bahujan Samaj Party which emerged powerfull in the decade of 90s in the political scene of India, especially in North Indian states Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and in some part of Bihar. It also emerged as political alternative among Dalits, marginals of North-South and Central Part of India. After acquiring great success in few decades after its foundation, BSP started being politically weaken in its base political zones such as Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana and Punjab. This decline in the performance of the BSP in electoral politics, in fact produced loss of hope among marginal communities in these states. After 2007 UP assembly election BSP and Mayawati, suffered from electoral decline constantly and gradually. It is interesting to observe that in this 2024 parliamentary election result, Mayawati and her party Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) could not get any seat. Due to it, her party remained almost marginalised in the political discourse produced by 2024 parliamentary election.