A people, long divided, battered, and preyed upon have finally stirred awake in a desperate bid to regain their dignity and right to life. All they needed was someone who could offer them a credible glimmer of hope, and they have responded in a manner that their erstwhile exploiters never imagined possible.

The Hindus of UP have spoken, and let there be no confusion about what they are seeking: a right to a safe & dignified life. What unfolded in Western UP over the last 5 years under Akhilesh raj, was a slow campaign of ethnic cleansing. Kairana was but one manifestation of this epidemic, the process is underway in countless inner city areas of Meerut, Saharanpur, Muzzafarnagar, Shamli etc.

This historic verdict, which has delivered 325 out of 403 assembly seats, places an enormous responsibility on BJP – their political leadership at all levels have to first and foremost ensure that the dilapidated law & order machinery of UP is set right & that the kind of rapes, molestation, murder & mayhem which have racked UP over the last 5 years are a thing of the past. Most of all, UP’s girls and women have to feel safe again – safe enough that they can go to schools, for tuition or just to the market.

Kairana did happen. However much the Delhi media and assorted left-liberals tried to dismiss the exodus of Hindus from Kairana, the ones who suffered, and others in UP who could relate with what happened in Kairana, knew that the 2017 assembly election was the last chance to stem the tide and take a stand – for their ancestral land, for their culture and civilization.

If Malda was a big exaggeration, Kairana has turned out total fabrication. Troublesome, how readily senior BJP voices lent credence to both

— Shekhar Gupta (@ShekharGupta) June 14, 2016

This is what a four-member NHRC (National Human Rights Commission) team which probed the exodus, reported –

“At least 24 witnesses stated that the youths of the specific majority community (Muslims in this case) in Kairana town pass lewd/taunting remarks against the females of the specific minority community in town. Due to this, females of the specific minority community (Hindus) in Kairana town avoid going outside frequently. However, they could not gather courage to report the matter to the police for the legal action,”

One just has to travel through Western UP, get to know the people and soak in the atmosphere to realize the fear and despondency that lurks within the Hindu mind. Of course, if you are a secular journalist, the guarded response of Hindus who are asked leading questions is enough to pass judgement that ‘communal polarization’ is just a Hindutva political ploy. UP 2017 has exposed this insensitive, elitist dismissal of Hindu human rights.  

It is imperative that BJP understands this mandate, and not get sucked in by the mind-games being played that this verdict is for “Sabka saath, sabka vikas” type homilies and that a significant number of Muslims have voted for BJP. Yes, all citizens of UP crave employment, 24×7 electricity and better roads, but this is a verdict by Hindus who crave the security that urban Hindus living in gated societies take for granted.

Muslims have no love lost for Modi, BJP or RSS. This is no surprise given the level of indoctrination that Muslim society is subjected by their maulanas (clergy), seminaries, political leadership, Urdu press, Marxist academics and national media. It is common knowledge that bulk of Muslims vote with only one objective in mind – to defeat BJP. This is euphemistically called ‘tactical voting’ by our political pundits, unlike Hindu consolidation which is criticized as ’communal polarization.’

The so-called Muslim veto has finally been vetoed by a united Hindu vote. It is time for Muslims to introspect and trigger the much-needed reform in their society to integrate with the national mainstream.   

The mandate in UP is the stamp of approval on what left-liberals demonize as the ‘Hindutva agenda’ – but which is actually an agenda for law & order, good governance, parity in education & management of religious institutions, repeal of myriad sectarian laws cooked up by the Nehruvian establishment, and a civilizational renaissance. A critical mass of Hindus whom we know by different names, viz. Dalits, Jats, OBCs, etc. could clearly see the big picture and did what sane people would do – voted for BJP to save themselves and their families from a real fear emanating out of demographic realities. This fear made them abandon their other preferences such as caste, loyalty to a party or leader… everything else took a backseat and the survival instinct of the Hindus of UP made sure that BJP wins, and wins by a huge margin.

Yes, it’s true that BJP has been doing a great amount of pro-Dalit work, but that alone didn’t cause Mayawati’s downfall. Her short-sighted political analysis of the dynamics of UP did. Same is the story for Mulayam & Akhilesh. Along with anti- incumbency factor, there was also a factor of Muslim appeasement which primarily worked against them. Even during the run up to the assembly polls, both Maya and Mulayam left no stone unturned in appeasing Muslim fundamentalists. The results are before us all.

This is a vote for Svaabhimaan (self-respect) first, Vikas (development) second.

Also, it is prudent to remind ourselves that the vote-share for BJP+ in UP 2017 was 41.4%, while the combined vote-share for BSP, SP and Congress was 50.2%. We have a lot of work ahead to educate each and every Hindu about the Hindutva agenda. And barring the legislatures, the other constitutional institutions are still firmly in the grip of the Nehruvian establishment.

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