LUCKNOW: Saffron-clad CM Yogi Adityanath may be holding centrestage for his religio-political affiliation and his pivotal role in BJP, but with multiple seers in the fray, UP’s political spectrum is replete with a saffron hue.
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The most recent example is of Swami Pravakta Nand, who will contest on a BJP ticket from Barkhera in Pilibhit that goes to polls in the fourth phase. Popularly known as Jaydrath, the 49-year-old monk is a ‘mahamandaleshwar’ of Param Akriya Dham, which houses a Hindu religious order in the Terai district. “At 21, I renounced the materialistic world and embarked on a spiritual path. I went to Haridwar and took ‘diksha’ in 2003,” he said, claiming to have worked for uplift of underprivileged. Jaydrath is a Lodh. Former UP CM late Kalyan Singh too hailed from OBC sub-caste.
He, however, had his political roadmap laid out. In 2012, Jaydrath contested from Barkhera on a BJP ticket, but lost to Hemraj Verma of SP. When BJP denied him a ticket in 2017, he defected to RLD and lost again. Considered close to BJP’s Pilibhit MP, Varun Gandhi, the seer was elected member of Pilibhit district panchayat with BJP support in June last year.
But, he had bigger ambitions. The seer sought to contest for the zila panchayat chairman’s post. When BJP junked his demand, Jaydrath defected to SP, only to return to the saffron fold within a couple of days. SP, too, is not without its saffron quotient. Akhilesh Yadav’s party fielded Swami Omvesh from Chandpur assembly seat in Bijnor that went to polls in the second phase. Omvesh has twice represented Chandpur — 1996 and 2002 — on an RLD ticket. His political fortunes, however, dwindled in 2007 and 2012 assembly elections when he lost the seat as an RLD candidate. He did not contest 2017 assembly polls, but joined SP.
Unnao MP Swami Sachchidanand Hari Sakshi Maharaj alias Sakshi Maharaj, is another religious leader with BJP. He also hails from the Lodh community. He represented Mathura in 1991 and Farrukhabad in 1996 and 1998. When BJP denied him a ticket in 1999, Sakshi joined Samajwadi Party, which eventually gave him a ticket to Rajya Sabha in 2000. In the same year, the saffron-clad politician had to spend a month in Tihar prison after being accused of rape. He, however, was acquitted in 2001 due to lack of evidence.
So is the case with Fatehpur MP and Union minister Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti. Hailing from the Nishad community, Jyoti also dons saffron and is known for her hardline Hindu image. She entered politics by contesting on a BJP ticket from Hamirpur in 2002, but lost. She again lost in 2007, but won in 2012 elections when SP came to power. In 2014 Lok Sabha elections, BJP fielded her from Fatehpur, which she won by defeating former BSP leader Naseemuddin Siddiqui’s son Afzal. She was appointed Union minister of state for food processing. After she won again in 2019, Jyoti was shifted to the rural development ministry.
