NEW DELHI: Taking a leaf out of Bihar, the Congress is considering a leadership change in Uttar Pradesh and appointing a president from the Dalit or Other Backwards Class (OBC) community to revive its fortunes in the most crucial state. The party expects the move to align with its “social justice” pitch as part of its strategy for the 2027 assembly elections, according to sources. However, the change may happen after the Bihar elections later this year.
According to insiders, the names being discussed include Tanuj Punia, a Lok Sabha member from Barabanki, and Virendra Chaudhary, a sitting MLA from Maharajganj.
Tanuj Punia is the son of PL Punia, the bureaucrat-turned-Dalit face of the party in the state, while Chaudhary belongs to the OBC community. By appointing a Dalit leader at the helm, the party believes it can consolidate the Dalit vote bank, which constitutes nearly 21.1 percent of the electorate.
A leader told this paper that the party is buoyed by its impressive performance in the 2024 elections and thinks now is an opportune time to woo Dalit and OBC votes. “This will help the party reach out to the deprived sections of society, with Rahul Gandhi’s twin planks of ‘save the Constitution’ and the demand for a nationwide caste survey,” said a leader.
A section believes that since the Dalit vote bank is drifting away from Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the party can capitalise on her eroding vote base and declining influence in Dalit politics.
Congress leaders also cite a post-poll survey conducted by Lokniti-CSDS, which showed that the INDIA bloc secured 56 percent of the non-Jatav Dalit votes and 25 percent of the Jatavs in 2024. They are of the view that with its caste census plank, the party can erode the BJP’s OBC vote bank, which accounts for nearly 42 percent of the state’s population.
A change in state leadership is considered necessary to diffuse growing unease within the party unit after the recent reshuffle. The party revamped its Uttar Pradesh units this March, appointing new district and city presidents for 75 districts. Despite an increased representation of Dalits, OBCs, and Muslims, there were murmurs that upper castes cornered many posts.
Party insiders say that the leadership of state Congress chief Ajay Rai may portend trouble for a potential Samajwadi Party (SP)-Congress alliance in the Assembly elections. In the past, the high command had to intervene several times to solve the rift between SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and Rai, they point out.
‘INDIA bloc secured 56% of non-Jatav Dalit votes’
Congress leaders cite a post-poll survey conducted by Lokniti-CSDS, which showed that the INDIA bloc secured 56 percent of the non-Jatav Dalit votes and 25 percent of the Jatavs in 2024. They are of the view that with its caste census plank, the party can erode the BJP’s OBC vote bank.