As UP parties turn leader-centric, political senas fade into oblivion

Lucknow, Feb 19 (SocialNews.XYZ) As political parties in Uttar Pradesh get increasingly leader-centric, the 'sena or brigade culture' is vanishing from the political horizon.

Senas, or private armies, were an important part of the political system till a few years ago and the political outfits drew their strength from these groups.

The Bahujan Volunteer Force (BVF) that comprised thousands of BSP cadres across Uttar Pradesh, was essentially tasked with ensuring security at the party's public programmes.

BSP president Mayawati, in the nineties, trusted the BVF more than the state police. The BVF was also responsible for spreading the party message through its members.

The Bahujan Samajwadi Party supremo was usually seen surrounded by her own security cordon, drawn from BVF.

The BVF members came from all walks of life, and are ready - at a moment's notice - to slip on a blue and white uniform and report for duty. Their work, as the BVF's name suggests, is voluntary.

"When the BSP went from village to village in the 1980s, party meetings were often attacked by upper castes. The BVF was set up to protect party workers during campaigning. BSP workers, at that time, were also wary of the UP police, which is drawn predominantly from dominant castes," said a veteran party functionary.

The BVF also included young Dalit women who handled the women in the crowds.

Today, the BVF has been reduced to a 'has been' force. Since Mayawati has reduced her public appearances, the relevance of the BVF has also been lost.

Former MLA from Bundelkhand, Badshah Singh, had set up his 'Insaaf Sena' which dominated the political scenario of the region in the eighties and nineties.

The Insaaf Sena worked for the poor and downtrodden and highlighted issues related to development.

As Badshah Singh's popularity dwindled after 2012, his Insaaf Sena also lost ground and is now seen as a spent force.

The Hindu Yuva Vahini (HYV) was a Hindu youth religious group, founded in April 2002 by Yogi Adityanath. Comprising mainly the youth, the HYV kept the banner of Hindutva flying high and, at one point of time, even surpassed the BJP in popularity.

It described itself as "A fierce cultural and social organisation dedicated to Hindutva and nationalism" and its stated objectives included "the integration of and mutual good faith within the massive Hindu society, through the complete abolishment of the differentiation between touchable-untouchable and high-low, promote the harmonious development of society."

The HYV had played a key role in Yogi Adityanath's campaign in the 2004, 2009 and the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

After Yogi Adityanath became the chief minister in March 2017, HYV units in the districts of Gorakhpur region were disbanded on the request of the BJP leadership.

The outfit's office-bearers and members, who rebelled against the decision, were expelled from the organisation - including the then state president Sunil Singh.

The outfit then withdrew from political activities to focus on social issues.

In January 2022 however, the outfit started political activities once again after the BJP decided to field Yogi Adityanath from the Gorakhpur Urban seat for the Assembly election.

However, the HYV is no longer as potent a force as it used to be.

The Raja Bhaiya Youth Brigade is a 'private army' of Jansatta Dal MLA Raghuraj Pratap Singh a.k.a. Raja Bhaiyya.

Initially centred around Pratapgarh, the brigade is now expanding its footprints into adjoining district of eastern Uttar Pradesh.

The brigade includes enthusiastic supporters of Raja Bhaiyya who work as his foot soldiers in his constituency.

Members of the youth brigade not only ensure that the popularity of their leader remains unaffected even in most adverse circumstances but also take care of his social media handles.

However, the Raja Bhaiya Youth Brigade does not have much presence in politics.

The Mulayam Singh Youth Brigade, once a vibrant organisation, has gradually receded into the background after Akhilesh Yadav took over the party.

The lethargy of the brigade is evident from the fact that there has been no post on its Facebook Page since August 2021.

A former leader of the brigade said, "The Mulayam Singh Youth brigade paled into insignificance when Netaji's (Mulayam Singh) health started deteriorating and he became inactive. The brigade had no direction left. Netaji's demise has left the brigade unsure of its future."

The Bhim Army - the Dalit youth army of emerging Dalit leader Chandra Shekhar Azad - is an exception in this era of fading sena culture.

The Bhim Army created its political offshoot known as the Azad Samaj Party two years ago but the Azad Samaj Party could not cash in on the popularity of Bhim Army.

Most of the Dalit youth are not even aware of the fact that the two are sibling organisations.

The Bhim Army has grown in popularity and strength in the past four years in western Uttar Pradesh and is even poaching on the base of Bahujan Samaj Party.

A Bhim Army leader said, "The Bhim Army is definitely more popular than Azad Samaj Party and we would have done better in the 2022 Assembly polls if we had contested as Bhim Army candidates. This is a rare case of the army being stronger than the political outfit."

In a rare case, one such private army created a bloodbath and led to the death of its own leader was the Swadheen Bharat Subhash Sena (SBSS).

Set up by Ram Vriksh Yadav, a disciple of godman Jai Gurudev, the SBSS had occupied the Jawahar Bagh in Mathura.

In June 2016, when an attempt was made to clear up the area of squatters, officials were shocked to find that the 'army' was well armed.

Ram Vriksh Yadav, originally from Ghazipur, was running a parallel government, complete with administration, revenue and armed forces, within the park.

The Sena fought a pitched battel with the cops, leading to the death of two top police officials, including the superintendent of police. Yadav was also killed in the clash.

R.K. Joshi, a senior political analyst, explained that "These private armies used to work as shadow organisations but as parties are becoming increasingly leader-centric, the work of organisations is becoming irrelevant."

Source: IANS