When the BSP supremo and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati arrived in Mumbai to address what was billed as the ‘mother of all rallies’ at the historic Shivaji Park last Sunday, expectations were high. Large hoardings had been put out in the city proclaiming the gathering of 25 lakh Dalits and a largescale crossover from four major parties in the state. The youths, who converged on the ground, waited with bated breath as they anticipated a concrete action plan and programme from the new messiah, while leaders of the Congress, the NCP, the BJP and the Shiv Sena were on full alert.

The rally, although impressive, failed to meet the expectations. Less than a lakh Dalits attended the rally. All that Mayawati told the crowd was that her party was ready to repeat the UP example in Maharashtra, the land of the Dalit icon B R Ambedkar and other social reformers like Mahatma Phule and Rajarshi Shahu.

Dalits in Maharashtra, who form 10.5 per cent of the population, have been lucky with leaders like Ambedkar to take up the cause of social reforms. Even before him, Rajarshi Shahu of Kolhapur had introduced reservations in jobs in his state way back in the late 19th century. There was a great deal of social awakening in Maharashtra in the 19th and 20th centuries, which saw reformers like Mahatma Phule, Agarkar and Hindutva icon Sawarkar fighting for social justice.

Ambedkar carried the movement of social reforms to new heights, even forcing Mahatma Gandhi to sign the Pune pact of 1932, which formed the basis for reservation of seats for SCs and STs in Parliament and state assemblies. As a result of his advocacy of education, a sizeable section of Dalits have truly came out of the shackles and now occupy positions of power in the government.

After his death in 1956, Ambedkar’s followers established the Republican Party of India (RPI). But they failed completely. The RPI was soon divided into as many factions as there were leaders, and the situation persists even today.

Politically, Dalits voted for the Congress, while a big chunk, — who converted to Buddhism following Ambedkar — remained loyal to the RPI factions. One factor that restricted the growth of the RPI was the bitter tirade launched by Ambedkar and his followers against Hinduism, which confined the faction-ridden party to neo-Buddhists.
In the post-Independence period, the political power was swiftly captured by the ruling Maratha class, which continues to hold sway in the state politics. For the first two decades after Independence, there was relative calm but soon unrest started among Dalits, who felt left out in the development process.

The 1970s gave birth to radical leadership and groups like Dalit Panther. New leadership of Ramdas Athawale, R S Gawai, Prakash Ambedkar (Ambedkar’s grandson), and Jogendra Kawade came to the front.

The Maratha stalwart Sharad Pawar cleverly patronised the new Dalit leadership. He backed Ramdas Athawale, aligning with his RPI faction, and during his chief ministership, made Athawale the social justice minister. The relationship has continued and Athawale has become an MP, waiting to be inducted into the Union Cabinet with Pawar’s backing. R S Gavai hobnobbed with the Congress and is now the Governor of Bihar. Prakash Ambedkar was close to former prime minister V P Singh, but his egoistic attitude has restricted his sphere of influence to Akola district.

Over the years, there is a strong feeling among Dalits that the RPI leadership has been bought over by the Congress and the NCP. Under growing pressure, the RPI faction leaders tried to forge unity some years ago, but within a few months the united RPI was splintered around personalities. Prakash Ambedkar now leads BBM (Bharipa-Bahujan Mahasangh), while Athawale leads RPI (Athawale).

There is considerable unrest among Dalit youths, who are now yearning for power. They feel cheated by the Congress and the NCP, and are angry with the traditional RPI leadership. They vented their frustration during the large scale violence, the state witnessed in the aftermath of Khairlanji massacre of a Dalit family in November last year. The desecration of Ambedkar’s statue in Kanpur too acted as a trigger for the restive youth. And now facing them is the prospect of Mayawati, who has captured power in UP on her own, without any crutches.

The situation has created fertile ground for a maverick leader to cash in on, but the question remains whether Mayawati can do it. During the 2004 parliamentary polls, she gave tickets to many disgruntled Congressmen in Vidarbha, who ate enough votes — routing the Congress in that region.

Mayawati’s BSP has succeeded in increasing its vote share, from 0.4 per cent in 1999 to 4 per cent in 2004 elections. There is also a qualitative difference now. The party has UP, the most populous state in the country, under its control, while the Muslims in the state are upset with the ruling parties over non-implementation of the Srikrishna Commission’s report on 1992-93 riots.