The Bharatiya Janata Party has received a severe blow in Uttar Pradesh, losing several key seats, including the Faizabad constituency. Faizabad includes the city of Ayodhya, where it was assumed that the seat would be easily secured by the BJP following the construction of the grand Ram Temple. However, the recent election results have proved to be surprising, with SP's Avadhesh Prasad leading by over 50,000 votes. He has considerably outpaced BJP's candidate Lallu Singh in many rounds.
Let's delve into how the Samajwadi Party managed to triumph over BJP's stronghold of Faizabad.
1- In a novel move by Akhilesh Yadav in the Ayodhya seat, he nominated a strong Pasi candidate from the substantial Dalit population, despite it being a general seat. Avadhesh Pasi, a six-time MLA and a minister with deep roots in the Samajwadi Party, represents the community that forms the largest caste demographic in Ayodhya.
2- BJP gave Lallu Singh a third chance here, who has been the MP twice in a row. Singh had previously sparked controversy by suggesting that the Modi government desired a 400-seat majority to amend the Constitution.
3- SP's move to field a Dalit candidate sparked a slogan, 'In Ayodhya, forget Mathura and Kashi, it’s Avadhesh Pasi.' It is believed that not only Dalit communities but other OBC groups like the Kurmis rallied behind the Dalit candidate. Despite the Ram Temple's construction, Akhilesh laid out a strategy that put BJP on the backfoot in Faizabad.
All three major parties have won in Faizabad
Notably, Faizabad, despite being a hub of Hindutva politics, has never been an exclusive stronghold for the BJP. Leaders from various parties have won elections here. Since 1991, the assembly election results have favored BJP, but the Faizabad Lok Sabha seat has been won by all three of Uttar Pradesh's major parties—BJP, SP, and Congress—in different elections.
