Inside BJP's plan to woo Elvish Yadav to win Yadav votes in Haryana

New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party is seemingly trying to secure the support of social media sensation Elvish Yadav in an effort to reach out to his support base amongst the youth and evolve him as a Yadav community leader in Haryana.

Elvish, who hails from the state, was the triumphant contestant of Bigg Boss OTT 2. 

The entertainer was felicitated by Haryana’s Chief Minister, Manohar Lal Khattar, further fuelling speculation that the saffron unit may use him as a campaigner in the forthcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly polls next year. 

Khattar even posted a picture alongside Elvish on social media and extended congratulations for the victory.

The Chief Minister is understood to be keen on grooming Elvish for a larger political role as the BJP hopes to evolve him as a caste leader over a period of time, sources said. 

This is also being seen as an attempt by the Khattar to silence senior Yadav leader and Union Minister Rao Inderjit Singh, who has been pushing the case of his daughter, Arti Singh Rao, as a candidate for the forthcoming Assembly polls despite resistance from the party.

The BJP feels that Elvish is expected to majorly boost the party’s chances in the Ahirwal region. 

With about 10 per cent population and a strong hold over land and government jobs, Yadavs are considered to be one of the most dominant communities in the state and are concentrated in the region of southern Haryana also known as Ahirwal. 

The caste can have an effect on the electoral outcome in about 25 Assembly constituencies and at least four Lok Sabha constituencies.

Yadavs are one of the castes that have strongly backed the BJP in its consolidation of non-Jat castes over the past decade. The consolidation of non-Jat votes was used by the saffron unit to ride to victory in the 2014 and 2019 state legislative Assembly polls.

However, the BJP has been facing some trouble with the community as Singh made the party's central leadership aware of the aspirations of his daughter, which he termed were non-negotiable. 

The former Congress leader, Singh had joined the BJP ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and is considered to be one of the senior-most Yadav leaders in the state. 

However, if the party is able to effectively use Elvish Yadav and his appeal amongst the youth; he may be groomed to become a counterbalance to Singh, sources said.

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeks a third term, Haryana has become a key state in BJP’s strategic plan for 2024 and votes of all key communities and castes are being targeted strategically by the saffron unit. 

While the BJP had secured seven out of the ten Lok Sabha seats in 2014, the state had given all 10 seats to the saffron unit in 2019. And the BJP hopes to repeat its 100 per cent strike rate in Haryana in 2024 as well. 

Currently, the 90-member Haryana Legislative Assembly has BJP's 40, Jannayak Janta Party's 10 and Congress' 31 members. The other seats are held by Indian National Lok Dal and Independents.

The party had secured 49 seats in the 2014 Haryana Assembly polls, forming its first-ever government in the state under Manohar Lal Khattar. However, BJP had to ally with the JJP in 2019 after its seats fell short of the halfway mark due to rebellion in the saffron unit over the distribution of tickets.  

By increasing its footprint amongst the youth by engaging with social media sensations like Elvish, the BJP hopes to do well in Haryana in the Lok Sabha and Haryana Legislative Assembly polls scheduled for next year.