BJP, SP make tacit moves on caste chessboard ahead of UP bypolls

The stage is set for a high-stakes battle in Uttar Pradesh, where the November 13 Assembly bypolls promise a showdown between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Samajwadi Party (SP).

- VIRENDRA SINGH RAWAT

Both major players are relying on their strategic playbooks, deploying caste calculations as they vie for control over the nine contested seats.

The stakes are clear: Four of these seats were won by the SP in the 2022 state polls—Sisamau, Katehari, Kundarki, and Karhal; three by the BJP—Khair, Phulpur, and Ghaziabad Sadar; and one each by BJP allies NISHAD Party and the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD)—Manjhwah and Meerapur respectively.

This bypoll could offer a foreshadowing of the larger battle in 2027 when the state's Assembly elections will test the state's political temperature once again.

Following the setback in the 2024 Haryana polls, the Congress has withdrawn from the UP bypolls, allowing its INDIA bloc partner SP to take the lead solely.

Meanwhile, the BJP has decided to contest all nine seats, though one of its candidates, Mithilesh Pal, will fight the election on RLD symbol.