Last week, a declaration by the prime minister at a rally in Maharashtra’s Dhule district sent Vidarbha in a state of confusion. Campaigning for the Bharatiya Janata Party for the state’s assembly polls that take place today, Narendra Modi had claimed that no power could split Maharashtra. Voters in Vidarbha interpreted this as the BJP’s U-turn on its firm support for their demands for a separate state.
Union minister Nitin Gadkari later clarified that Modi’s reference was to the Shiv Sena’s allegations of the BJP trying to split Mumbai from Maharashtra. But on the streets of Akola, one of the 11 districts in Vidarbha, voters don’t seem to care for such justifications.
They are now sceptical about the BJP’s position on statehood for their region. But that won't stop many Akola residents from voting for Modi anyway.
“We need to be a separate state because the Maharashtra government has always ignored the development of Vidarbha,” said Vishnu Kamble, a young auto driver from Akola city. “That’s the only reason I usually vote for the Bharipa Bahujan party, but this time I am considering giving Modi a chance, because they say he is going to bring development.”
Statehood politics
The Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh, an offshoot of the Republican Party of India, was launched in 1999 by Prakash Ambedkar, the grandson of Babasaheb Ambedkar. Even though the left-wing party has always placed the demand for Vidarbha statehood at the centre of its campaigns, its voter base – particularly Dalits from the Mali caste – remains restricted to Akola. The party currently has two legislators from the district and is perhaps the BJP’s strongest rival in Akola this season.
The BJP, which had supported Vidarbha statehood in its national manifesto, has not included it in its Maharashtra manifesto and has not been overtly campaigning for the cause.
“It’s not that we don’t want statehood for Vidarbha,” said Nana Kulkarni, a spokesperson for the Akola district BJP. “But this election, our focus is to come to power in Maharashtra, and to drive out the corruption that has been responsible for the neglect of Vidarbha. Statehood will be a secondary issue.”
Bharipa founder Prakash Ambedkar is now banking on this change in the BJP’s tune on the Vidarbha statehood movement.
“The BJP does not have a clear policy at all, and pounces on different issues and different times,” said Ambedkar, who had lost the Lok Sabha seat this April to BJP candidate Sanjay Dhotre.
In a loose alliance with the Communist Party of India and the Communist Party (Marxist), Ambedkar’s party hopes to secure at least 40 assembly seats across Maharashtra. Besides statehood, it is fighting for some specific causes in districts like Akola. “We have, for instance, plenty of cash crops in the district, but I want to develop the agro-processing industry so that farmers don’t have to sell their crops outside to have them processed,” said Ambedkar.
Separation anxiety
Among the wealthier, landed farmers, processing plants is one of the main points on their voting agenda.
“We need a government that will help farmers set up small processing plants right on their fields, so that they can process crops like dal and turmeric by themselves instead of going to big, private factories,” said Namdevrao Adhau, who owns 15 acres of farmland in Deulgaon in Akola. “And we want a government that will give us better rates for our produce.”
Adhau and his neighbours are not yet sure which party would actually help farmers fulfil these dreams, but they have come to believe that separation from Maharashtra may not be the best way to achieve prosperity.
“I think Vidarbha can have development even as a part of Maharashtra, if the party in power wants it to,” said Dadarao Deshmukh, a 65-year-old resident of Charangaon, a village in Patur taluka. Deshmukh had served as a sarpanch from the Congress for 18 years till around 1989, but five years ago he quit politics because of the “high levels of corruption” in the system.
During the previous BJP-Shiv Sena government more than 15 years ago, the area of Washim lobbied to break away from Akola and become a separate district. “The government granted their wish, but the lives of farmers in Washim is the same as before,” said Deshmukh. “So what good will statehood do us?”
Dreaming of jobs
Smaller farmers and labourers in the district share a similar sentiment, but largely because the Modi campaign has successfully sold them the development dream.
“There is nothing left in agriculture in this area, because the rainfall is often poor and irrigation is limited to those who can afford it,” said Vishal Tikar, a farmer and part-time general store owner in Charangaon. “We need development in the form of large industries to create jobs, and Modi has been giving good speeches about this.”
Job seekers in Akola are deeply resentful of the fact that the government-run Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation zone, though large in area, is barely functional. Many factories – from cotton ginning mills to oil and dal mills – have been shutting shop for the past two or three decades, making unemployment a growing concern.
“If my father had not lost his job because of a defunct factory, I would have been a practicing lawyer by now,” said Rajesh Khobragade, a 39-year-old auto driver who happens to hold a lawyer’s degree.
Khobragade’s father was a supervisor in a soap factory 25 years ago, but found himself jobless when the factory suddenly shut down. Forced to support the family from a young age, Khobragade dropped out of his BA course and took up work as a government insurance agent in Akola city. Simultaneously, he studied for his law degree and completed it two years ago. “But setting up work as a lawyer will require some years of unpaid traineeship. So for now, I am driving autos,” said Khobragade.
While the LLB auto driver claims he “does not worship just one individual”, his colleagues are keen to see Modi win the Maharashtra election.
“We know he may not give us statehood,” said Shyam Shende, another auto driver. “But at least having the same party at the centre, state and district levels will bring us some hope of development.”
We welcome your comments at
letters@scroll.in.
Union minister Nitin Gadkari later clarified that Modi’s reference was to the Shiv Sena’s allegations of the BJP trying to split Mumbai from Maharashtra. But on the streets of Akola, one of the 11 districts in Vidarbha, voters don’t seem to care for such justifications.
They are now sceptical about the BJP’s position on statehood for their region. But that won't stop many Akola residents from voting for Modi anyway.
“We need to be a separate state because the Maharashtra government has always ignored the development of Vidarbha,” said Vishnu Kamble, a young auto driver from Akola city. “That’s the only reason I usually vote for the Bharipa Bahujan party, but this time I am considering giving Modi a chance, because they say he is going to bring development.”
Statehood politics
The Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh, an offshoot of the Republican Party of India, was launched in 1999 by Prakash Ambedkar, the grandson of Babasaheb Ambedkar. Even though the left-wing party has always placed the demand for Vidarbha statehood at the centre of its campaigns, its voter base – particularly Dalits from the Mali caste – remains restricted to Akola. The party currently has two legislators from the district and is perhaps the BJP’s strongest rival in Akola this season.
The BJP, which had supported Vidarbha statehood in its national manifesto, has not included it in its Maharashtra manifesto and has not been overtly campaigning for the cause.
“It’s not that we don’t want statehood for Vidarbha,” said Nana Kulkarni, a spokesperson for the Akola district BJP. “But this election, our focus is to come to power in Maharashtra, and to drive out the corruption that has been responsible for the neglect of Vidarbha. Statehood will be a secondary issue.”
Bharipa founder Prakash Ambedkar is now banking on this change in the BJP’s tune on the Vidarbha statehood movement.
“The BJP does not have a clear policy at all, and pounces on different issues and different times,” said Ambedkar, who had lost the Lok Sabha seat this April to BJP candidate Sanjay Dhotre.
In a loose alliance with the Communist Party of India and the Communist Party (Marxist), Ambedkar’s party hopes to secure at least 40 assembly seats across Maharashtra. Besides statehood, it is fighting for some specific causes in districts like Akola. “We have, for instance, plenty of cash crops in the district, but I want to develop the agro-processing industry so that farmers don’t have to sell their crops outside to have them processed,” said Ambedkar.
Separation anxiety
Among the wealthier, landed farmers, processing plants is one of the main points on their voting agenda.
“We need a government that will help farmers set up small processing plants right on their fields, so that they can process crops like dal and turmeric by themselves instead of going to big, private factories,” said Namdevrao Adhau, who owns 15 acres of farmland in Deulgaon in Akola. “And we want a government that will give us better rates for our produce.”
Adhau and his neighbours are not yet sure which party would actually help farmers fulfil these dreams, but they have come to believe that separation from Maharashtra may not be the best way to achieve prosperity.
“I think Vidarbha can have development even as a part of Maharashtra, if the party in power wants it to,” said Dadarao Deshmukh, a 65-year-old resident of Charangaon, a village in Patur taluka. Deshmukh had served as a sarpanch from the Congress for 18 years till around 1989, but five years ago he quit politics because of the “high levels of corruption” in the system.
During the previous BJP-Shiv Sena government more than 15 years ago, the area of Washim lobbied to break away from Akola and become a separate district. “The government granted their wish, but the lives of farmers in Washim is the same as before,” said Deshmukh. “So what good will statehood do us?”
Dreaming of jobs
Smaller farmers and labourers in the district share a similar sentiment, but largely because the Modi campaign has successfully sold them the development dream.
“There is nothing left in agriculture in this area, because the rainfall is often poor and irrigation is limited to those who can afford it,” said Vishal Tikar, a farmer and part-time general store owner in Charangaon. “We need development in the form of large industries to create jobs, and Modi has been giving good speeches about this.”
Job seekers in Akola are deeply resentful of the fact that the government-run Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation zone, though large in area, is barely functional. Many factories – from cotton ginning mills to oil and dal mills – have been shutting shop for the past two or three decades, making unemployment a growing concern.
“If my father had not lost his job because of a defunct factory, I would have been a practicing lawyer by now,” said Rajesh Khobragade, a 39-year-old auto driver who happens to hold a lawyer’s degree.
Rajesh Khobragade, auto driver with a legal degree.
Khobragade’s father was a supervisor in a soap factory 25 years ago, but found himself jobless when the factory suddenly shut down. Forced to support the family from a young age, Khobragade dropped out of his BA course and took up work as a government insurance agent in Akola city. Simultaneously, he studied for his law degree and completed it two years ago. “But setting up work as a lawyer will require some years of unpaid traineeship. So for now, I am driving autos,” said Khobragade.
While the LLB auto driver claims he “does not worship just one individual”, his colleagues are keen to see Modi win the Maharashtra election.
“We know he may not give us statehood,” said Shyam Shende, another auto driver. “But at least having the same party at the centre, state and district levels will bring us some hope of development.”