Varanasi Lok sabha Election 2014: Cast plays an important role in Varanasi Parliamentary Seat.
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- Last Updated: Thursday, 22 January 2015 20:57
Varanasi Lok sabha Election 2014: Cast plays an important role in Varanasi Parliamentary Seat.
NEW DELHI: Varanasi has seen hard fought electoral battles that has sometimes resulted in very close calls. The caste calculus of the seat makes Varanasi a difficult election to call, with local factors mediating caste loyalties. While census data or even EC data does not record caste and community-wise figures of voters, various political parties have made rough estimates of social groups that they need to target.
The Lok Sabha constituency of 15,32,000 voters has five assembly seat two of which are rural and three urban. As per an average of numbers sourced from various political parties, Muslims form the largest block of voters with around 3 lakh voters. Varanasi parliamentary Election 2014 live updates
Brahmins account for 2.5 lakh, Kurmis of Patels (an OBC community heavily backing Modi) 1.5 lakh, Yadavs 1.5 lakh, Kayasthas 65,000, Vaish 2 lakh, Chaurasias 80,000, Bhumihars at 1.5 lakh and Dalits 80,000.
Traditionally, BJP has been counting on a large section of the upper caste votes — Brahmins account for 2.5 lakh, Kurmis of Patels (an OBC community heavily backing Modi) 1.5 lakh, Yadavs 1.5 lakh, Kayasthas 65,000, Vaish 2 lakh, Chaurasias 80,000, Bhumihars at 1.5 lakh and Dalits 80,000. Traditionally, BJP has been counting on a large section of the upper caste votes — Brahmins, Kayasthas, Vaish and even Bhumihars. Varanasi Lok sabha Election: cast play an important role
The seat is held by BJP veteran MM Joshi who won by a slender margin. Whenever Congress has managed to wrest the seat, it has been after securing the support of upper caste and Muslim votes, as it happened in 2004, when Rajesh Mishra won the seat.
In 2009, Joshi's opponents were Ajay Rai (who fought on an SP ticket) and Mukhtar Ansari, local strongman and head of the Quami Ekta Dal. The division in upper caste votes was clear and it took a Herculean effort to ensure that Joshi won by 17,000 votes.Arvind Kejriwal Began roadshow in Varanasi
In these polls, Kejriwal seems to be eager to bridge the rural-urban divide, holding more meetings in Sewapuri and Rohania than Varanasi city and cantonment areas where BJP has support. In the city, he is concentrating on poorer sections.
"The strategy is interesting, in that Ajay Rai started out as a favourite among Modi's challengers. He had the Bhumihar support, which could have cut some of BJP's upper caste support, and Congress ticket which would have got him minority support. While he has made public statements about being grateful to Ansari for withdrawing his candidature in his favour, that has turned out to be a poisoned fruit for him," said a Congress leader.
"In Poorvanchal, the land of Bahubalis, you can get away with not being a constant friend, but you have to make sure you are consistent in your enmity. Ansari is the main accused in Rai brother Avadesh's murder. He had sworn vengeance, but now the Bhumihar community is looking askance at him."
source:economics times