Will Ram Temple dominate over basic issues in fifth phase of UP Assembly polls?

In 2017 Assembly polls, BJP had won 38 seats out of 55 seats in this region, while the SP had retained 15 and the Congress had won two seats.

Lucknow: The voting for the fifth phase of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls for 61 Assembly seats spread across 12 districts including Ayodhya, Sultanpur, Chitrakoot, Pratapgarh, Kaushambi, Prayagraj, Barabaki, Bahraich, Shrawasti, Gonda, Amethi and Raebareli, began on Sunday morning. But all eye are set on the constituency that garnered most of the limelight in this phase is Ayodhya, the reason being the construction of the Ram Mandir.

Ayodhya is witnessing its first big election after the 2019 Supreme Court verdict on the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case. Earlier in Faizabad district, Ayodhya has been the bastion of the BJP since 1991 after the Ram Janmabhoomi movement started in the 1980s. 

As voting, people came out of their houses to cast their votes in the 5th phase of UP Elections2022. "I have voted on issues of employment, development and safety," says Digpal Das, who cast his vote at Purva Madhyamik Vidyalaya in Ayodhya.

With the development of the temple town and the sentiments of Hindu voters regarding "Ram", BJP finds itself in a relatively comfortable position in this region than its opponents, especially the Samajwadi Party. 

The SP has fielded Brahmin face Tej Narayan Pandey against BJP`s sitting MLA Ved Prakash Gupta. Worth mentioning, Pandey won from the seat in the 2012 Assembly polls. Thanks to Ram Mandir, the UP polls this time added a new aspect of temple politics. 

Political leaders across party lines, be it SP chief Akhilesh Yadav or Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi have not missed the chance for customary visits to temples. This can be seen as an effort to dent BJP`s vote bank. 

In 2017, BJP had won 38 seats out of 55 seats in this region, while the SP had retained 15 and the Congress had won two seats.

In a multi-cornered contest with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Samajwadi Party (SP), Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) as prime contenders, as many as 692 candidates are in the fray in the fifth phase whose political fate will be decided by around 2.24 crore electorates.

Key issues like, job losses among migrant labourers, lack of infrastructure, unemployment and most-importantly stray cattle menace along with some sort of anti-incumbency factor might reflect on the ballot box for the ruling BJP in this phase.

The BJP is banking on Prime Minister Narendra Modi`s charismatic image, double-engine rhetoric, free ration during the COVID pandemic and PM Awas Yojana. 

On the other hand, Akhilesh Yadav-led SP is eying on youth electorates besides its traditional game of consolidation of Yadav and Muslim vote bank. 

Asaduddin Owaisi`s AIMIM which is also in the fray may prove to be a spoiler in SP`s social engineering when it comes to Muslim voters. 

BSP supremo Mayawati who appeared to be on relatively backfoot in terms of aggressive campaigning is relying on its core Dalit vote bank. 

With Priyanka Gandhi Vadra steering Congress` power-packed campaigns, the party is also relying on this region for a good share of seats. The party believes Priyanka Gandhi`s "Ladki hoon lad sakti hoon" campaign will mobilize women voters that might bring some good fortune.

(With ANI Inputs)