Lucknow: When decided to contest the Lucknow seat, BJP president Rajnath Singh thought it would be a cakewalk for him but as the polling date nears, winning the seat is posing as a tough challenge for him.
The Modi wave that is reportedly sweeping across the country is not helping the BJP president in Lucknow.
Mr Singh is not only facing stiff competition from Rita Bahuguna Joshi of the Congress but is also saddled with intense factionalism in the party.
The mistrust within the party is evident from the fact that Mr Singh’s entire campaign is being run by his sons Pankaj and Neeraj, wife Savitri, daughter Anamika and daughter-in-law Sushma.
Party leaders in Lucknow are conspicuous by their absence during the campaign. The biggest task before the BJP president is to win over the brahmin community this time.
Brahmins are upset with the manner the BJP has treated some of its top brahmin leaders, including Murli Manohar Joshi, Kalraj Misra and Kesrinath Tripathi.
Besides, the community has traditionally been at loggerheads with the Thakurs and Mr Singh has a strong pro Thakur image.
The Khatri and Sindhi community that adds up to almost 2.8 lakh votes are also angry with the BJP for humiliating leaders like Lalji Tandon and Dr Joshi and kayasthas, with 1.5 lakh votes are upset because the party has not fielded even a single member from the community. State government employees and OBCs are up in arms against the BJP for its support to the reservation in promotion issue. Mr Singh’s sole hope is his own stature in national politics and his claim to the legacy of former PM Atal Behari Vajpayee.
