Video Editor: Mohd Irshad Alam
With star-studded black caps on their heads, these young IIT students have heated up the political sphere in this sweltering weather. Addressing issues like reservation, these youngsters plan on ‘transforming the nation’.
Naveen Kumar, who calls himself a rebel, is among the 50 boys who are passing out from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), the most prestigious institution in the country, and instead of working for big multinational companies and securing a future, they are starting a political party.
These students have launched 'Bahujan Azad Party' with the supposed motive to empower people of Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and OBCs (OBC), they say.
The Quint spoke to these IITians to understand how, without jobs or backing, these youngsters are keeping their venture afloat.
Is it a Political Party or a Startup?
When we compared the Bahujan Azad Party to a startup, one of the members of the party, Akhilesh said:
This political party is not a business strategy but our true emotions. Around 85 percent of Bahujans are still backward. Even today, they are downtrodden. We intend to revolutionise this and bring them in to the mainstream.
Why the Issue of Caste?
Some people may believe that studying at a premier institute helps people overcome barriers of caste, but Naveen says their party wants to concentrate on the issue of representation and not just economic upliftment.
Reservation means representation. Which specific caste have we represented? Take the judiciary, administration and media. It is being represented by certain castes. That’s the reason we are raising the issue for the Bahujans. We are including women, and minority communities in Bahujans.
Will They Contest the 2019 Elections?
While the students feel that they are not ready to contest elections in 2019 but they will fight the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections.
However, Vikrant Vatsal, a party member, claimed that if by any chance they feel they are in a position to contest the 2019 elections, and they are able to get the support of the people, then they will not think twice.
He also claimed that in the upcoming elections in 2019, they will not support either Congress or BJP as both the parties are more or less the same.
Modi or Gandhi as PM?
While Naveen claims neither will become prime minister, he did emphasize on the fact that there wont be a comeback for PM Narendra Modi for sure.
If these people (BJP) win again, then I think all the schools and colleges will turn into temples very soon. People are being blinded in the name of religion. Their minds have been intoxicated so that are away from the main topics and can’t claim their rights. This government is ruling with the RSS. They want to mislead people in the name of religion. If we start talking about cow urine in our country then what do we have IITs for? All such institutions should be turned into a temple in that case.Naveen Kumar, Founding Member, Bahujan Azad Party
Why do Dalits Need BAP?
Considering the fact that there is a party present for the Dalits, namely the Bahujan Samaj Party, headed by Mayawati, why do the people, especially the Dalits and the backward classes, require BAP?
Mayawati works for the Bahujans. But she lacks commitment towards the backward classes. People are still living in a downtrodden state and are suffering even after 70 years of Independence. I don’t see that commitment in the BJP or the Congress either. This is the reason why youths like us are leaving our luxurious life and trying to change the country. We want to turn the exploited into rulers.Akhilesh Kumar, Founding Member, Bahujan Azad Party
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