Eastern UP: Why Is Sant Kabir Nagar So Despondent About Politics And Politicians?

Sant Kabir Nagar (SKN) Lok Sabha constituency is uniquely placed at midway between Gorakhpur and Basti.

In 2024 general elections (GE), the relatively new constituency (established in 2009) could not fend off anti-incumbency wave sweeping most of Purvanchal. Remarkably, in SKN, most of the voters went against their ideological inclination on polling booths. 

Even if they love Narendra Modi-Yogi Adityanath duo, they disapproved of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate.

As a result, lot of 'core' voters of BJP either did not go out to vote or voted for the INDI Alliance's Laxmikant Nishad who also belongs to the same community as BJP candidate Pravin Kumar Nishad.

Like its nearby Gorakhpur, Nishads with 3.5 lakh votes are in decisive number here. Dalits come close second with three lakh votes. Muslims — mainly settled in Khalilabad assembly segments have two lakh votes, same as that of Brahmins. Patel community also wields assertive influence here.

SKN is roughly unaffected by industrialisation and modernisation wave. The city which was believed to be the outskirt slum of Gorakhpur is suffering from its own image.

Roadside tea shop owners do say that their sales have increased, but give credit to modernisation and maintenance of highway passing through the city.

“Earlier it was a jungle. Now that night lights are there, highway hotels are expanding and travellers also feel safe in stopping near our shop for tea or snack,” said Ram Sajeevan, a septuagenarian tea shop owner on the highway connecting Khalilabad to Lucknow.

The situation for others of his profession inside the city is also the same. Improved road connectivity, increased police patrol and relative decline in violence have led to more money (not substantially big though) flowing in shops.

A fruit seller named Ashraf in Nehru Chowk said that he travels 15km per day from his village and still earns enough to educate his kids. He knows more than a dozen people who are progressing in this journey.

However, as soon as issue turns from daily lives problems to politics, there is a conspicuous silence. It is as if politics is a pariah subject among average population.

“What can I do with politics? Will it give me food? Will it help my kids study? Will it help my business thrive? Nothing no? So, what’s the point talking about it?” said Ram Sajeevan’s son.

When countered with argument that politicians decide policies, he retorted, “They can’t do anything. It is all on luck. Go to Nishad community and ask how much Pravin did for them. Or even come back after few years and ask about Laxmikant Nishad’s work. Here, we are all on our own, sir.”

One needs to go deep inside villages to see the reason behind such despondency. 

Swarajya’s entry in Bankatiya village was welcomed with a dangerously open part of a transformer. The electrician had opened it but gone for some ‘break’ before finishing the job.

Apparently, the electrician was a private employee and villagers have to arrange money through small donations (Rs 10, Rs 20) to pay for his services.

These are the moments when voters tend to curse their choices. Suraj Yadav, a student who also does odd jobs to support his family, said that he and his friends voted for change but were unsuccessful.

“Here we have Samajwadi Party (SP) leader, and there Yogiji and Modiji in charge. Even if Lakshmikant Nishad was a good leader, he would not get ample support,” said Suraj.

“If you know it, then why did you vote for him,” asked an elderly man sitting nearby. Pointing towards a SP karyakarta on bike, Suraj said that “bhaiya told me to vote for him”.

The elderly man was visibly frustrated with the answer. Even though he had loads of complaints regarding public distribution, bribery, police not doing its job properly and much more, he is content with the way no one has encroached upon his farmland after Yogi Adityanath came to power.

“You see sir the fear SP created during its reign is still used by its cadre base. Though, they don’t threaten, everyone fears due to Muslim villages nearby,” said the old man.

Interestingly, that fear defines voting choices in villages where Hindus are in majority. There is a general sense here that in the villages beyond Bandha Chauraha, extremism runs supreme.

On the condition of anonymity, people even said that many houses in those villages have saved ammunitions underground for emergencies.

“There have been many cases where Hindus have gone there and never gone back. Do not know what they did with the bodies,” said Shubham, an auto driver who travels between Basti and SKN.

Before Yogi, the situation was worse. Now, at least Hindus can pass through those villages — something that wasn't possible before 2017. "You can go there, have tea, eat, and return without issue. Everything will be fine, but avoid talking to women or saying anything that could be interpreted as disrespectful," said Ravi.

Many young people of the minority community from the region go to Arab countries or even Pakistan. In India, they go to Mumbai or Gujarat in large numbers.

“Few (less than five) Hindu families living in those villages are constantly insulted and asked to convert,” he added.

It is in the backdrop of such a fear that majority of voters had chosen to go the BJP way in 2019 GE. That election was historic for SKN in the sense that for the first time a person from Nishad community had won from here.

Before winning from SKN in 2019, Pravin Nishad was earlier Member of Parliament (MP) from Gorakhpur between 2017 and 2019 after winning a by-poll as an ally of the SP.

Pravin Nishad's father, Dr Sanjay Nishad, founded the NISHAD Party in 2016, aiming to represent the interests of the Nishad community — a marginalised fishing community in Uttar Pradesh. 

The party quickly gained traction among the Nishads and Other Backward Classes, culminating in a significant victory during the Gorakhpur by-polls of 2018. The by-poll was a turning point.

Held after Yogi Adityanath vacated his seat to become the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, the Gorakhpur by-election saw Pravin Nishad, then a candidate of the Nishad Party supported by the SP, defeat the BJP's Upendra Dutt Shukla. 

For a brief period, Pravin Nishad was hailed as a political prodigy, capable of challenging the BJP's dominance in the region. Within a year of his victory though, Pravin joined BJP and got a ticket from SKN in 2019. He won with a margin of more than 92,000 votes.

The 2019 victory was a mandate for Praveen to build upon the strong base set up by the Yogi government in two years after 2017. A bare minimum of government schools being efficient, more job opportunities for youth, relief from communal tension and active presence in the constituency was expected from him.

However, most people do not even recognise Pravin by his face. His absence hurt his candidacy more than anything else. Sure, roads were built but credit is attributed to central and state governments rather than Pravin.

Even when pits started to emerge on roads, people approached local BJP leaders to sort the issue.

The complaints were only met with never-to-be-fulfilled assurance. “If he had come to the area, only then he would know what problems we are facing. Look here, on this busy four-way crossroad, waterlogging problem is there,” said Rajkumar, who runs a sweet shop near Bhanda Chauraha.

Due to lack of opportunities, Rajkumar doubles as a Dish TV agent. When asked about whom did his family vote for, a woman (family member) working on the shop responded, “we were left with no option other than BJP as we feared other candidate would empower radicals in nearby villages”.

Vote of the lady along with 4,06,524 others went in vain though. Pravin's appeal — his image as a fresh, educated and incorruptible face in the political landscape now stands diluted. For average folk, he now comes across as another nepotistic kid who knows nothing.

“In Bankatiya village, an old principal was caught harassing a teacher. Lot of drama happened, that principle is out now, but probably Pravin did not even get the news,” said Anita, whose kids’ education got negatively impacted by it.

Even Sanjay Nishad’s door-to-door campaign for his son was a failure.

Nishads feel cheated by Pravin and Nishad Party for not taking the reservation issue forward. “We had hope from the father-son duo, both fell in the lap of BJP and could not even get us reservation,” said Upendra Sahani, enjoying his evening at Kabir Chaura in Maghar.

Maghar is the place where Saint Kabir is believed to have departed from the physical world. In solidarity, both Hindus and Muslims have made two memorials situated nearby.

However, SP fielding Laxmikant Nishad led to division among Nishad voters. Moreover, Laxmikant is a relatively more known face for SKN as he was member of legislative assembly (MLA) from Menhdawal assembly constituency of SKN between 2012-2017.

His MLAship was also not bright, which is why despite choosing Laxmikant, people do not expect much from him. 

For BJP voters, election day felt like choosing between two difficult options. If they voted for BJP, it would mean they endorsed Pravin's tenure as an MP. If they did not vote BJP, they would give a thumbs down to the security and services provided by Modi-Yogi. Meanwhile, SP voters saw it as an opportunity to revive their party and remove BJP, no matter the cost.

As we exit SKN, there is a sense that this town is waiting for a disruptive leader to remove the indifference around politics.