Who is Swami Prasad Maurya and what impact will his exit from BJP have on Uttar Pradesh polls

Soon after the resignation, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav welcomed Swami Prasad Maurya to the party. (Image: Twitter/@yadavakhilesh)

Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister and popular non-Yadav OBC face of UP politics Swami Prasad Maurya resigned from his post in the Yogi Adityanath government on January 11 ahead of state assembly elections.

Maurya also met Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav but said he will announce his future course of action soon.

दलितों, पिछड़ों, किसानों, बेरोजगार नौजवानों एवं छोटे-लघु एवं मध्यम श्रेणी के व्यापारियों की घोर उपेक्षात्मक रवैये के कारण उत्तर प्रदेश के योगी मंत्रिमंडल से इस्तीफा देता हूं। pic.twitter.com/ubw4oKMK7t

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— Swami Prasad Maurya (@SwamiPMaurya) January 11, 2022

Maurya, 68, minister in Yogi Adityanath-led Cabinet announced his resignation from the post on Twitter by accusing the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of neglecting Dalits, backwards and farmers.

Maurya had switched to the BJP from Bahujan Samaj Party months ahead of 2017 assembly elections accusing party chief Mayawati of corruption and “auctioning" seats.

READ: MC Election Update Today: Not high command but people will choose Punjab CM, says Navjot Sidhu

The seven polling phases of Uttar Pradesh will be held on February 10, February 14, February 20, February 23, February 27, March 3 and March 7.

Who is Swami Prasad Maurya?

Maurya is a five-time MLA who is known as an influential non-Yadav OBC leader from Uttar Pradesh. He has won last three assembly elections from Padrauna in the Kushinagar district of Uttar Pradesh.

After beginning his political career as convener of the Yuva Lok Dal in 1980s, Maurya had a stint in the Janata Dal before joining the BSP in 1996. He won assembly elections on a BSP ticket in 1996 and eventually became a minister in the BJP-supported Mayawati government a year later.

Maurya was known to be number 2 to Mayawati during his two decades in BSP. He was a minister twice, leader of the Opposition twice and also the president of the party once.

Also, read : Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections 2022 from February 10 to March 7. Things to know about high-stakes polls

 In 2016, he joined the BJP months ahead of 2017 assembly polls. Maurya’s daughter, Sanghmitra Maurya, has been a BJP MP since 2019.

The impact on Uttar Pradesh election

Maurya is the most high-profile leader to leave the BJP ahead of the Uttar Pradesh polls beginning February 10. He was minister of labour, employment, coordination in the Yogi Adityanath government. Soon after his resignation, three more BJP legislators — Roshan Lal Verma, Brijesh Prajapati and Bhagwati Sagar — quit the party.

सामाजिक न्याय और समता-समानता की लड़ाई लड़ने वाले लोकप्रिय नेता श्री स्वामी प्रसाद मौर्या जी एवं उनके साथ आने वाले अन्य सभी नेताओं, कार्यकर्ताओं और समर्थकों का सपा में ससम्मान हार्दिक स्वागत एवं अभिनंदन!

सामाजिक न्याय का इंक़लाब होगा ~ बाइस में बदलाव होगा#बाइसमेंबाइसिकल pic.twitter.com/BPvSK3GEDQ

— Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) January 11, 2022

For the BJP, Maurya’s exit will be a loss of a prominent non-Yadav OBC face ahead of polls. Political analysts had attributed BJP’s victory in the 2017 assembly polls to the support it got from non-Yadav OBCs, a strong vote bank comprising 35 per cent of the population in the state. The accusation that the government is dominated by Thakurs will gain more credence with Maurya’s exit.

For the SP, where Maurya is likely headed, the entry would strengthen the Opposition party and shed its image of being a party of Yadavs and Muslims. Another OBC leader, OP Rajbhar of the Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP), has already aligned with the Akhilesh Yadav-led party.

आदरणीय स्वामी प्रसाद मौर्य जी ने किन कारणों से इस्तीफा दिया है मैं नहीं जानता हूँ उनसे अपील है कि बैठकर बात करें जल्दबाजी में लिये हुये फैसले अक्सर गलत साबित होते हैं

— Keshav Prasad Maurya (@kpmaurya1) January 11, 2022

Keshav Prasad Maurya, the BJP’s senior-most OBC leader, urged Maurya to reconsider his decision. The buzz is that Keshav Prasad Maurya is also nursing a grudge, indicating the non-Yadav OBCs may be moving away from the BJP ahead of assembly polls.