BJP will hold meetings of the "intellectual class" in 17 cities today (Representational)
The BJP's Brahmin outreach programme in Uttar Pradesh drew flak from the Opposition Saturday with the BSP and the Congress alleging the community faced "oppression" in the past four years of BJP rule, and the party is remembering them now with an eye on the upcoming state polls.
The BJP has announced a series of conferences for the "enlightened class" in all the 403 assembly constituencies of Uttar Pradesh beginning today.
During the programme, the BJP plans to reach out to people from different walks of life including teachers, engineers, doctors, litterateurs and deliberate on the works and schemes its governments at the Centre and in the state have launched for the masses.
Taking a potshot at the BJP, the BSP, which began holding similar programmes from July 23 in its attempt to return to power with the support of all sections of society as it did in 2007, accused the ruling party of "copying" its idea.
The success of the BSP's "Prabuddh Varg Sammelan" (meeting of intellectuals) has troubled the BJP, BSP chief Mayawati said Friday.
In a significant symbolic move, the BSP started its campaign, led by its national general secretary Satish Chandra Misra, from Ayodhya to reach out to Brahmin voters assuring their interests will be safeguarded if the party comes to power.
Like the BSP, the Samajwadi Party, too, has been holding a series of meetings of intellectuals since August 23.
With the BSP, the Samajwadi Party and now the BJP making clear their plans to go all out to woo the Brahmins, who constitute 13% of the state's population, the Congress alleged that the parties started talking about the Brahmin community with just the election in mind.
"If the BJP, BSP as well as SP have so much love for the Brahmins, why don't they project a Brahmin face as the chief ministerial candidate in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh assembly elections?" UP Congress media convener Lalan Kumar said.
"The reality is that the Congress has given Uttar Pradesh the most number of Brahmin chief ministers - six. The parties which are doing all kinds of drama to woo the Brahmins should tell how many Brahmin chief ministers they have given," Lalan Kumar said.
The Congress leader also alleged that the Brahmins have faced maximum "oppression" under the present BJP government.
Bracing for the crucial state polls in the politically important Uttar Pradesh, the BJP has been making efforts to reach out to the Brahmins who had played an important role in their massive victory in 2017.
Recently, Rajasthan Governor Kalraj Mishra, Union Minister Dr Mahendra Pandey and Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra attended a conference in Lucknow.
The BJP has announced that a meeting of the "intellectual class" will be organised in 17 cities today and from September 6 to September 20, in all 403 assembly constituencies of the state.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, BJP national vice president and state in-charge Radha Mohan Singh, Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, state unit president Swatantra Dev Singh, state general secretary (Organisation) Sunil Bansal, state joint general secretary (Organisation) Karmveer Singh, central ministers, and national and state-level office-bearers will address these gatherings.
Earlier in June, senior Congress leader, Jitin Prasada had joined the ruling party and is expected to be projected as the Brahmin face of the BJP.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)