Electorally relevant Nishad community demand inclusion in SC category

Lucknow: The Samajwadi Party was barely two years’ old in 1994 when its founder-president Mulayam Singh Yadav decided to broaden its core vote bank of Yadavs and Muslims in the state.

He fielded bandit queen Phoolan Devi, a Nishad by caste, in the 1996 Lok Sabha elections, ignoring the backlash his decision triggered. She became the poster girl of the Nishad community, giving rise to the community’s political aspirations.

Phoolan Devi a dacoit from Chambal was active in the 1980s; a victim of rape by upper caste men, she had massacred 22 Thakurs in Behmai village near Kanpur in 1981 in a case of revenge killing. The case went on to grab national headlines.

She later surrendered before the then chief minister Arjun Singh in Madhya Pradesh and was in jail between 1983 and 1994. Soon after she was released, Yadav fielded her from the Mirzapur Lok Sabha constituency to influence and win over the Nishad community. The community plays a vital role in 37 Lok Sabha seats (over 12% votes in about a dozen-odd constituencies) and 100-odd assembly constituencies of the state besides some pockets in neighbouring Bihar. Phoolan was murdered in 2001, leaving the Nishad community rudderless.

That was when Sanjay Nishad appeared on the scene, first joining Kanshi Ram’s BAMCEF (All India Backward and Minority Communities Employees Federation) in 2008 and launching a campaign to mobilise 553 sub-castes of fishermen’s communities.

Nishad floated his own party, the Nishad Party, in 2016. The party opened its account in its maiden Vidhan Sabha polls in 2017. He fielded his son Pravin Nishad and, in alliance with the Samajwadi Party, won the Lok Sabha by-poll from Gorakhpur (the seat was vacated by Yogi Adityanath after becoming CM) in 2018. He, however, contested the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in alliance with the BJP and won. Within eight years of the party’s inception, he pushed the grand old party, the Congress, to the rear in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly polls.

At present, he has six MLAs in the Vidhan Sabha: Both his sons are lawmakers – one in the state assembly and the other in the Lok Sabha, while he himself is an MLA and a minister in Yogi government. The ground prepared by Phoolan Devi gave him huge dividends.

Also Read: Rift in Nishad community widens ahead of Lok Sabha election

He is now eyeing a bigger win in 2024. Interestingly, the Nishad community has stayed with him, while he has also kept Phoolan Devi alive in their minds. As late as July 2023, Nishad demanded a CBI probe into Phoolan Devi’s murder. In a letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah and chief minister Yogi Adityanath, he also demanded release of her properties from the ‘SP-backed mafia elements’ and handing them over to her mother who lives in Jalaun.

Nishad hopes that Modi will address his demand: His party is demanding inclusion of Nishad, Majhwar, Kewat and Mallah communities in the Scheduled Caste category and reservation for them in government jobs.

“As of now, Nishads comprising 17 communities, fall in the OBC category. The Akhilesh Yadav-government had proposed SC/ST status for Nishads and even Union home minister Amit Shah, at a joint rally (with the Nishad Party) in December 2021, had assured them of the government fulfilling their demand and resolving their issues,” Nishad said.

He is hopeful that the Centre will soon take a decision as the state government has already sent a letter to the Registrar General of India and Census Commissioner drawing their attention to the fact that the Majhwar caste is already mentioned in the list of Scheduled Castes of the UP government.

The Nishad Party chief further said, “Majhi, Majhwar, Kewat, Mallah and Nishad surnames are used by people of the Majhwar caste in different areas of the state. Due to the use of various surnames, they are not issued SC certificates whereas other SC communities using various surnames are getting benefits meant for the community. All people with surnames associated with Majhwar caste should be given SC certificates.”

On the decision to install a statue of Nishad Raj on the Ram temple premises in Ayodhya, Nishad said, “It’s a proud moment for us. Nishads are rulers of waters and their ancestors had helped Lord Ram cross the river during his exile. The NDA will doubly benefit in the 2024 polls if they order the inclusion of the Nishad community in the Scheduled Caste category.”

Over the years, Nishads have emerged as a major vote bank in several pockets of the state, making them electorally relevant. Ahead of the 2022 Uttar Pradesh polls, the Congress had tried to penetrate the vote bank by taking out the ‘Nadi Adhikar Yatra’ but gained little.