At Mayawati’s birthplace, loyalty meets caste compulsions

Residents claim most of the development work — from infrastructure to education and electricity — was carried out during Mayawati’s tenure as Chief Minister between 2007-2012. “Our vote is and always has been for Mayawati. It’s her village after all. Roads were kachha before this and puddles would form during monsoon. She changed the map of this village and we are grateful,” said Shakuntala, a resident. Asked if Mayawati’s tie-up with SP and RLD has impacted her vote, she said, “If it is anything, it has increased.”

Sanju (19), who studies engineering in a nearby college, is excited for his first vote — he has already visited the polling booth twice to prepare himself. “As a Dalit, our idol is Mayawati,” he said.

Though a Gurjar-dominated village, Badalpur is also home to Dalits, Muslims and a few Buddhist families. While traditionally a BSP bastion, this year’s candidate, Satveer Nagar, has also garnered support since he is a Gurjar. “We have almost 3,000 voters. Yes, we back Mayawati, but Satveer Nagar being from our community makes a difference. The voter is smart and we have to think of our community as well. He (Satveer) is a farmer’s son and stays among us. If the alliance candidate was not from our community, we would have thought twice about the voting for the alliance,” said village pradhan Vijay Pal Nagar.

With two government schools and a private one, as well as a polytechnic degree college, Badalpur has fared better on the education parameter in comparison to villages adopted by sitting MPs.

A BJP supporter in the village, however, claimed one must not rule out the “Modi factor”. “His speeches are very impressive. I feel the country is in safe hands listening to him. While we feel Mahesh Sharma has neglected us, a vote for the BJP is a vote for the nation,” said resident Sandeep Kumar.