Two reported killed in Sambhal violence sparked by second survey of Shahi Jama Masjid
A major violence erupted in the city on Sunday morning as officials began the second phase of the Shahi Jama Masjid survey.
BJP leader Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary has been appointed UP BJP President defeating Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak, MLC Vidyasagar Sonkar, Union Ministers of State Bhanu Pratap Verma, and BL Verma among others who were in the race for the post.
With this appointment, the BJP has played a Jat card in UP pursuant to its Mission 2024. A Jat leader from Moradabad, Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary, an MLC, will now occupy the highest position in BJP’s state unit.
The reason for making a Jat leader the state president of the party is to ensure the party’s victory in seven Lok Sabha constituencies in western UP in which the BJP lost in the 2019 elections. The party has made a big bet on a Jat face to pacify the farmers who have been angry over the three farm bills.
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Bhupendra Chaudhary is considered the leader of the organisation from the very beginning. He is beyond factionalism. He comes from Moradabad which falls in western UP where around 25 seats are dominated by Jats.
In 2012, Chaudhary was the regional president of western UP. He was minister for Panchayati raj for six years. He became MLC in 2016 during the reign of the Samajwadi Party. Known to be close to Sunil Bansal, all these equations are those that show the influence of Bhupendra Singh among the Jats the benefits of which go to the party in 2024.
At present, the BJP is weak in western UP. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the party directly lost seven seats, including Bijnor, Nagina, Saharanpur, Sambhal, Moradabad, Rampur, and Amroha. All these are Jat-dominated areas a weak link for the BJP.
The Jats of the region have been angry with the BJP over the reservation of the community in 2019. This time around, the anger of the Jats is over the three agricultural laws. In the assembly elections 2022, the BJP suffered a setback. Despite the withdrawal of the Agriculture Act, the vote bank of the farmers and Jats decreased. The party is giving priority to Jats as a damage control exercise.
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