"SP MP urges Sengol's removal; BJP, RSS revere Manusmriti"

First-time Samajwadi Party (SP) MP R K Chaudhary, from the Mohanlalganj (SC-reserved) seat in Uttar Pradesh, demanded in a letter to the Speaker that the Sengol sceptre be replaced with a gigantic replica of the Constitution after taking the oath of office as a member of the Lok Sabha.

Chaudhary was a close colleague of Kanshi Ram and one of the founding members of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). He held the position of state minister five times. He was kicked out of the BSP in 2001, but he was brought back in 2013 to win over Pasi supporters. In 2016, Chaudhary left the BSP and became a member of the SP. After being refused a ticket by the SP-BSP combination, he ran for the Lok Sabha elections of 2019 on the Congress platform. 2021 saw him return

Why the abrupt urge to swap Sengol out for a Constitutional duplicate?

The nation of India is democratic. The goal of the BJP and RSS is to restore the country to the Raje-rajwade (royalty) era. Rather than the Constitution, they would prefer that the Manusmriti govern the nation. They do not claim the Constitution of Babasaheb Ambedkar as their own. Manusmriti is regarded by them as their constitution.

The term "sentgol" is Tamil. In Tamil Nadu, there once lived a Chola ruler who called himself God. Priests in the area recommended that Lord Mountbatten, the former Viceroy of India, present the new Prime Minister with a symbol of rajtantra, or monarchy, after the nation attained independence. After receiving the Sengol, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru honoredly placed it in an Allahabad museum. India is a democratic nation that abides by Ambedkar's Constitution. However, the Sengol was put in place to lessen the importance of the Constitution.

The BJP said that your request was a disrespect to Tamil culture.

That was Periyar's hometown. The Sengol is not recognized by his supporters. They only hold the Constitution to be true. After I spoke with a number of Tamil Members of Parliament, they complimented my stance. I received congrats on this from a former lecturer at Lucknow University.

Why didn't other members of your party want to discuss the matter?

The problem is significant even though it was concealed. As a result, everyone is speaking carefully. Moreover, a lot of people are ignorant of Sengol. I'll discuss this matter with my leaders.

What are your thoughts on the UP Lok Sabha results?

Akhilesh Yadav is a mature man with a distinct viewpoint. The slogan "PDA (Pichhda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak)" was created by him. The social coalition that Akhilesh has formed is the same one that Kanshi Ram first established, the DS4 (Dalit Shoshit Samaj Sangharsh Samiti), the purview of which was later expanded to include the DPA (Dalit, Pichhda, Alpsankhyak; or Dalits, Backwards, Minorities). That was once referred to as the Bahujan Samaj. The PDA, which Akhilesh founded, targets the same social group. We used to yell, "Jo Bahujan ki baat karega, woh Delhi se raaj karega" (Whoever talks for the Bahujan, would govern from Delhi) during the reign of Kanshi Ram. The new tagline is "Jo PDA ki baat karega, woh," since PDA and Bahujan are the same.

"Baba tera mission adhura, Kanshi Ram karenge pura" (Babasaheb Ambedkar, your mission is incomplete; Kanshi Ram will complete it) is another slogan that has been modified. The phrase "Baba tera mission adhura, Akhilesh Yadav karenge pura" (Babasaheb, Akhilesh Yadav will fulfill your mission) has once again become popular after the passing of Kanshi Ram.

Has the SP examined the reasons behind its losses in seats?

More UP seats have been won by the SP than by the BJP. This is just the start. We are now the most popular party in Uttar Pradesh. We'll top all political parties in the nation in the future.

Dalit politics in the UP changed after this election. Chandrashekhar Azad triumphed in Nagina, the BSP lost, and Dalit votes switched from the NDA to INDIA. Thoughts?

We are shocked that the BSP's support base switched to the SP in spite of our lack of appeal. We didn't believe they would cast ballots for us. However, they got in touch with our employees and offered assistance. For instance, we had the cooperation of multiple BSP workers in Lucknow. Twice during the elections, I received calls from a Dalit politician who was connected to Mayawati, informing me that he had sent workers to support me.

The acts of Behenji (Mayawati) do not adhere to Kanshi Ram's or Ambedkarite doctrine. I respect her. Yet according to her, Kanshi Ram appointed her his successor. One cannot associate the BSP's social movement with a specific individual. None of his team members succeeded B R Ambedkar as his heir. Kanshi Ram revitalized the movement years later.

You were one of the BSP's original members. What is the reason behind the party's decline?

"Jahan jahan paaon pada santan ke, tahan tahan bantadhar" is a common proverb in eastern Uttar Pradesh that means "there are some people who ruin whatever they touch." When they joined the BSP, they destroyed everything. I refuse to accept their name. The party collapsed because of the induction of such leaders.