BJP MLA Gurjar's Protest Against Yogi Government Gives Keshav Prasad Maurya Another 'OBC Opportunity'

Months after Keshav Prasad Maurya's rebellion against Uttar Pradesh (UP) Chief Minister (CM) Yogi Adityanath was pacified, the Deputy CM found another issue to leverage for his political positioning.

However, this time, instead of going directly against the CM, Maurya has extended support to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) Nand Kishor Gurjar.

The two-time MLA from Loni, Ghaziabad, is known as a firebrand who raises grassroots issues, even challenging his own government. However, this time, his criticism has been more direct.

The issue erupted on 20 March when a 'Kalash Yatra' for Ram Katha, which Gurjar was leading, was halted by the Ghaziabad Police due to alleged lack of permission, a charge that the BJP MLA denies.

Gurjar and his supporters entered into a scuffle with the police, after which they allegedly suffered injuries and the BJP MLA's kurta was allegedly torn by the police. Protesting against the police action, Gurjar also sat on a dharna with his supporters.

The next day, on 21 March, Gurjar held a press conference and made explosive allegations of corruption against the ruling Yogi government and even that there was a conspiracy to kill him. He also pledged to continue wearing the torn kurta and walk without footwear until action is taken against police officers.

"Uttar Pradesh has the most corrupt government ever. The officers are misleading the Chief Minister. The Ghaziabad Police Commissioner drinks alcohol at 5 in the evening. I will tell the Chief Minister every single thing," he said.

"Ayodhya ji's land has been looted by officials," Gurjar said. Specifically targeting the Chief Secretary, he added, "The Chief Secretary of UP is the most corrupt officer in the world," and even accused him of controlling the CM's mind through tantric rituals, emphasising that 'Maharaj ji was not like this.'

While Yogi Adityanath is yet to react to Gurjar's allegations, BJP UP president Bhupendra Chaudhary has issued a show-cause notice to the Loni MLA, questioning why disciplinary action should not be taken against him.

However, the BJP's notice has not deterred Gurjar from his gesture against the Yogi government, especially since he has received the support of the Gujjar community and the Deputy CM.

The provincial president of Akhil Bharatiya Gurjar Mahasabha, Dinesh Gurjar, issued a statement on the official letterhead of the organisation, condemning the police action against the MLA and extending support to him.

On 23 March, the Loni MLA organised an event in honour of Pannadhai, the caretaker of Mewar prince Uday Singh, who sacrificed her own son for the royal lineage, highlighting 'golden history of the Gujjar community.'

This event was attended by Deputy CM Maurya, who often tries to project himself as an Other Backward Classes (OBC) leader, as the chief guest.

Notably, both Gujjar and Maurya are OBC communities in UP. The former has influence in western UP, while the latter is more dominant in the eastern UP, from where Deputy CM Maurya hails.

Also, both communities are known to support the BJP in UP. However, in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, while the Gujjar community continued to support the BJP, the Maurya community's votes diverged to the BJP rival Samajwadi Party (SP).

This, along with the divergence of other OBC communities' votes to the SP, has created serious challenges for the BJP in UP. Maurya tried to project himself as a solution to this problem by flexing muscles after the Lok Sabha elections, but he has very little to prove his credibility.

This is because the BJP lost in Maurya's hometown, Kaushambi, in 2024 and the attrition of the Maurya votes in the region could not be stopped. Moreover, Maurya himself lost his Sirathu seat in Kaushambi in the 2022 assembly election.

However, Maurya tried to do damage control at the event when he told the Gujjar community, "I will do every effort to keep your heads high. I will take your word to Lucknow and Delhi," in light of recent events.

Regarding BJP MLA Gurjar, he said, "I am very sad to see Nand Kishor Gurjar ji in torn kurta. Under Yogi Adityanath's government, flowers are thrown at Ram bhakts, Krishna bhakts, Shiv bhakts and patriots, not lathis (sticks)."

Maurya assured the audience that the matter of the police action would be taken 'very seriously' and action would be taken against guilty officers.

The statement comes at a time when the BJP is in search of its new UP president, who could tackle the OBC challenge. Notably, Maurya was the UP BJP president in 2017, when the party won the assembly election.

It is unclear whether Maurya is again eyeing this post or is flexing muscles to show his potential as an OBC leader against Adityanath, who is considered an 'upper caste' leader for being a Rajput before he became a monk, or is genuinely trying to woo Gujjars to keep supporting the BJP.

However, one thing is clear that the recent action has seriously harmed Yogi Adityanath's image, not only among the Gujjar community, but also among Hindus at large, who are seeing the police action as being against their religious procession.

Another fallout of these events is the negative message that is being sent to BJP representatives, who often complain that the CM prioritizes officers over them. Moreover, BJP's OBC leaders like former minister Sanjeev Balyan and MLA Yogesh Verma, have also complained about UP Police's behaviour in the past months.

Recently, another issue erupted in Shamli where BJP leader Vivek Premi was arrested on the charges of assault. Local traders started protesting the arrest and were joined by former Muzaffarnagar member of Parliament (MP), Balyan.

Balyan alleged that the police are registering fake cases and the administration is trying to hand over shops, over which the controversy erupted, to illegitimate holders. He also condemned the police action against MLA Gurjar.

The above instances show a clear discord between the BJP leaders and the UP Police. While the government may come out and claim that under Yogi Adityanath not even BJP leaders are allowed to take the law in their hands, the successive complaints of BJP leaders against the police cannot also be overlooked.

The third major point is the corruption allegations. The Yogi government is known for its 'zero-tolerance' policy against corruption and the CM himself enjoys a clean image. However, the corruption allegations against officers cannot be ignored when the buzz on the ground supports these allegations.

Moreover, these allegations came at a time when Yogi Adityanath suspended Abhishek Prakash from the position of the CEO of Invest UP after allegations that the latter demanded a bribe for clearing a project.

Going forward, the UP CM needs to the address structural issues in the administration that are distancing Yogi Adityanath from his party leaders, or detractors (like Maurya) will continue to look for weaknesses to exploit.