Samajwadi Party (SP) Rajya Sabha MP Javed Ali Khan alleged during a program in Moradabad that BJP has poisoned the majority population. Political analyst Rahul Lal described his statement as shocking and outrageous. He said that there seems to be little possibility of the party benefiting from this statement of Javed Ali Khan. If it is believed that the majority society has become poisonous, then we will have to see in the context of 2024 Lok Sabha elections. At that time, BJP had tried to create a wave through Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha, despite this, Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh won 37 seats, breaking the record of late Mulayam Singh Yadav.
Javed Ali’s statement poses a threat of ‘reverse polarization’
This means that along with the Muslim society, he also got huge support from the majority society like Maurya, Shakya, Saini, Pal, Kurmi and Nishad. Even Dalits, who were once considered angry with SP, voted for him enthusiastically and SP’s Dalit candidates won even on general seats. In such a situation, when Javed Ali says that the majority society has become poisonous, then it is difficult to accept this statement. This is a kind of “self-goal” which furthers the narrative of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Presently the country is struggling with serious issues like inflation (which has crossed 9%), unemployment and NEET paper leak. The youth, angry with BJP, voted heavily for SP and Congress. Therefore, SP should seriously raise the all-inclusive slogan of PDA (Backward, Dalit, Minority) and issues of public concern. Javed Ali’s statement that it is difficult to convince in majority areas can create “reverse polarization”, contrary to SP’s strategy.
Fear of Akhilesh Yadav’s image being anti-Hindu
Akhilesh Yadav has worked very hard by learning from the mistakes of 2017 and 2019, as a result of which SP has become the third largest party in the country. In such a situation, such statements can hurt those OBC and Dalit voters who had left BJP and joined SP and they may turn to BJP again. This will give BJP an opportunity to say that SP is “anti-majority” or “anti-Hindu”. Whereas Akhilesh Yadav himself is building a grand temple in Etawah to protect Hindu sentiments and is raising issues like land scam in Ayodhya prominently. Due to these efforts, India Alliance won the seats in and around Ayodhya in 2024.
Effort to stop scattering of Muslim votes
It is important for the opposition to remain focused on all-inclusive and fundamental issues. There is already anger and disappointment among the public. Leaders like Javed Ali should understand that whether this statement was made in over-enthusiasm or under some pressure, it harms the efforts being made by Akhilesh Yadav for the protection of the Constitution, recruitment of 69000 teachers and caste census. Some people argue that this statement might have been made to prevent dispersion of Muslim votes, but such statements create dissatisfaction among those who want development away from communal politics.
Now that all eyes are on the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, such statements are not appropriate. Whether it is to reduce the influence of Owaisi brothers or to secure Muslim votes, instead of communal polarization, it would be better for SP to raise issues of public concern like inflation, unemployment, law and order and power cuts.
[नोट- उपरोक्त दिए गए विचार लेखक के व्यक्तिगत विचार हैं. यह ज़रूरी नहीं है कि एबीपी न्यूज़ ग्रुप इससे सहमत हो. इस लेख से जुड़े सभी दावे या आपत्ति के लिए सिर्फ लेखक ही ज़िम्मेदार है.]

