BJP's new UP team strikes Mandal-Kamandal balance ahead of state polls
With barely a year left before the Assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party's new Uttar Pradesh organisational team has been put together with a calibrated
With barely a year left before the Assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party's new Uttar Pradesh organisational team has been put together with a calibrated effort to balance caste, region, age, education and gender in what appears to be a careful Mandal-Kamandal mix. The strongest weight in the new structure has gone to Other Backward Classes, while upper castes continue to hold a substantial share of positions. Read Full Story Among the 64 office-bearers, 30, or 47 per cent, are from the OBC category, making it the largest social group in the team.
The General category has 26 members, or 41 per cent, while Scheduled Castes have seven representatives, or 11 per cent, and Scheduled Tribes have one, or 2 per cent. The line-up points to an attempt to widen representation among Dalit and tribal communities while retaining the party's traditional support base. Within the General category, Brahmins have the highest presence with 10 office-bearers. They are followed by Kshatriyas, Bhumihars and Vaishyas. In the OBC segment, representation has been spread across Kurmis, Jats, Yadavs, Pals, Gurjars, Lodhis and Shakyas, instead of being centred on any one caste, indicating an effort to keep the social mix broad.
The exercise in balancing is not limited to caste. The party has shared posts across all six organisational zones, with Awadh getting the highest representation, followed by Kashi, while ensuring that every region has a place in the new team. The new composition also points to a shift in age profile and educational background. Most of the office-bearers are below 50, and the team includes a large number of graduates, postgraduates and people with professional degrees, signalling a preference for younger and academically qualified leaders. Women have also been given a larger role, with 12 office-bearers in all, including four vice-presidents, one general secretary and seven secretaries.
Overall, the new Uttar Pradesh organisational team under state BJP chief Pankaj Chaudhary reflects an attempt to combine OBC outreach with upper-caste representation, while also factoring in regional spread, generational change, educational profile and a bigger role for women in the party structure. Ends
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