UP’s new Naxals
PIYUSH SRIVASTAVA : Sat Apr 28 2007, 12:52 hrs
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bhage bhage Naxali
(The Naxals run when Yogi's army arrives)The popular slogan doing the rounds of eastern Uttar Pradesh these days owes its genesis to Nawalparasi district of Nepal in 2004. The link would seem obscure without a reference to Yogi Adityanath. The BJP MP and successor of Gorakshnath temple in Gorakhpur owns a sub-muth (spread over 42 acres) in Nawalparasi, which is managed by Madhesis, the Indians who migrated to Nepal decades ago. And Yogi's sena is high on morale because he has succeeded in coercing the BJP to choose candidates of his choice for the ongoing assembly elections.
"For Yogi, Naxalites are those who challenge his pre-eminence in Nawalparasi and in the terai areas across the Nepal border," says Akhilendra Pratap Singh, a CPI(ML) politburo member. "They also mean the Maoists of Nepal and the liberals who refuse of buy his Hindutva theory in eastern Uttar Pradesh. He also has financial interests in Nepal, as the offering in his Nawalparasi muth runs to the tune of crores. Now, Maoists are trying to force out his muth men from Nepal," he adds.
Rajesh Sahni concurs. "He and his followers don't believe in democracy. The Madhesis, who believe that the Hindu monarchy was better than democracy, see hope in Adityanath, who is considered by the followers of Gorakshpeeth as the undisputed premier of eastern UP and the adjoining areas in Nepal." Despite all odds, Sahni has challenged Yogi in Maniram constituency in Gorakhpur where the main muth is located. He is contesting on a CPI(ML) ticket against Yogi's candidate, Vijay Bahadur Yadav.
Yogi, on the other hand, openly admits that anyone who challenges him will be branded a Naxalite. "The Maoists have often attacked my muth in Nepal just because it is managed by the Indians there. They try to extort money from my muth, which we don't allow, and our men are ready to challenge them even with arms, if required," he says.
"It is obvious that Yogi fears the Maoists as his politics involves communalising the region in the name of Hindu unity. That is why despite no such threat in recent years, he is strategically attacking the revolutionary leftists," says Singh. "In fact, the situation is ripe in eastern UP for a leftist upsurge due to its proximity with Nepal, where the Maoist movement is very strong," he adds.
His sentiments are echoed by Surya Prakash Mahara, a Maoist leader, who addressed a public meeting in Kapilvastu on April 20 and then in Sonauli, calling upon people to defeat the BJP. "The BJP supports the king is Nepal and it can provide logistic support to the Madhesis if it wins the assembly elections in UP," he says. Later, he confirmed his opposition to Yogi, saying, "People like Yogi confuse the society for their political ends."
There are 22 assembly segments in UP across the Indo-Nepal border, where besides the political equations of the state, it is also the Madhesis and the Maoists who make a difference. The former have appealed to the people to vote for the BJP or its alliance JD(U) or Apna Dal and the latter want the Congress or its allies to win. It may not be incidental that these 22 assembly seats are closer to the 21 districts of Nepal which have been included in the map of "Madhesi Rashtra" released recently in Gorakhpur. The 21 districts are Kanchanpur, Kailali, Bardia, Banke, Dang, Kapilwastu, Rupandehi, Nawalparasi, Chitwan, Makwanpur, Rautahat, Bara, Parasa, Mahottari, Dhanusa, Siraha, Sarlahi, Saptari, Sunsari, Morang and Jhapa.
"Defeating the Maoists in Nepal and checking their interference in eastern UP is our mission," says Chandrika Prasad, one of the zonal chiefs of Madhesi Peoples' Right Forum, and considered close to Yogi. "We are chalking out plans to campaign for Yogi's candidates more aggressively. We can make a difference because despite being identified as an ethnic minority community in Nepal, we constitute 50 per cent of the total population and have spilled over substantially to eastern UP," adds Prasad, who was also present at the International Hindu Convention convened by Yogi in December 24 last year in Gorakhpur.
"Our aim is to openly oppose Yogi so that the people know that he is not an undisputed leader," says Sahni. "We dispute his presence and call him an anti-people politician. Half a dozen people were killed in the communal riots allegedly sparked by Yogi in January."
Meanwhile, the morale of Yogi's lathi-wielding sena is high because it has found an issue on which to fight the elections.
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