With the BJP and the BSP (Bahujan Samaj Party) announcing that they would not have any pre-poll tieup with any party in the Vidhan Sabha elections to be held by the year end, the latter has come into the reckoning as a third major force in the pre-poll scenario in Madhya Pradesh. However, political observers do not rule out a tie-up at the eleventh hour or some kind of strategic seat adjustments to prevent the Congress from returning to power for the third time. So far, the polling pattern has shown polarisation of votes between the Congress and the BJP in Madhya Pradesh. Notwithstanding this fact, the Bahujan Samaj Party has been making its presence felt in the State. During the last two polls, it affected the poll prospects of the two major parties in some regions.

The BSP had won two Vidhan Sabha seats for the first time in 1990. Since then, it has not looked back and has been increasing its tally in subsequent elections. Its progress was not confined to only Vidhan Sabha elections; the BSP stunned the BJP and the Congress in 1991 when it recorded a win for the Lok Sabha in the Rewa constituency for the first time. The Congress got a severe jolt, as Rewa had been its traditional stronghold. In the 1993 Assembly elections the BSP became the third political force in the State when it raised its strength to 11 seats. And to demonstrate that it was not a fluke, it repeated its performance in 1998 too when it again won 11 seats. What was remarkable was that in more than a dozen constituencies it was in second place, edging out the Congress or the BJP as the case may be. Now its emergence as the third political force has come to stay. Since the 1980 Vidhan Sabha elections, the Congress and the BJP have been dividing among themselves about three-fourths of the seats in the Assembly. There was no party which could earn the third place or came close to the major parties in numbers. Surprisingly, independents gained more than 10 per cent votes. But in 1990, the BSP changed the scenario.

In 1990, the BSP had sponsored candidates for 187 seats but could win only two. Its vote percentage was just 3.55. In four seats, it came second. When it won the Rewa Lok Sabha seat in 1991 defeating the Congress stalwart and the present Vidhan Sabha Speaker Sriniwas Tiwari, it sent shock waves among the major parties. The BJP was pushed to third place and the Janata Dal to fourth in Rewa. In the Vidhan Sabha elections in 1993 and 1998 the BSP gained 7.02 per cent and 6.15 per cent votes. Although it was way behind the Congress and the BJP yet it earned the distinction of being the third force. It made waves in the Lok Sabha elections also. While it had won only one seat (Rewa) in 1991, it added one more to its tally in the 1996 Lok Sabha poll. What was more, in four constituencies it came second. As no other party except the Congress and the BJP had recorded victory in the Lok Sabha elections, the BSP stayed as the third force in respect of the Lok Sabha election too. The BSP’s popularity and base started expanding as it had emerged as the third political party to make its presence felt both in the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections. Earlier, since 1984, no third party could win a single seat in the Lok Sabha or the Vidhan Sabha at the same time. The BSP earned this honour even in the absence of any organisational network worth the name in the State. Neither did it have a powerful leadership. Its candidates won on their own merit.

The BSP victories demonstrated that it had a strong base in Vindhya, Chambal (Gwalior, Guna, Bhind districts) and in some Chhattisgarh regions. After the formation of Chhattisgarh its area of influence has shrunk in Madhya Pradesh as the party had also got divided. Moreover, seven constituencies from where it had won are now in Chhattisgarh. Of these, four legislators had joined the Congress in the united Madhya Pradesh. The party has only four seats in the Madhya Pradesh Vidhan Sabha at present. Despite this, its claim as the third force remains intact. However, the party has failed to make its presence felt in other regions like Malwa and Mahakoshal. In the next elections, the party is expected to get a few seats in these regions too as it has done solid groundwork there. The party has also extended its network all over the State and has been working silently to enlarge its base.

One of the notable characteristics of the BSP victories is that it has failed to win from SC/ST reserved constituencies despite its known identity as a pro-dalit outfit. Most of its victories in the united Madhya Pradesh (when Chhattisgarh had not yet been formed) have been from general constituencies from where it got the support of the backward classes.

It is worth mentioning here that the founder of the BSP, Kanshi Ram, had launched his political career from Madhya Pradesh in 1984. He had contested from Janjgir constituency, which is now in Chhattisgarh, for the Lok Sabha election that year as an independent candidate. But he could get only nine per cent votes and lost his deposit. However, in 1990, he had the Bahujan Samaj Party which he had already founded, in the Vidhan Sabha elections in Madhya Pradesh and succeeded in opening the party’s account by winning two seats.

In the 1998 Vidhan Sabha and the 1999 Lok Sabha elections, the BSP could not sway the voters much in its favour. Its tally remained static and the percentage of votes polled also went down in 1998 compared to the 1993 poll. During the last five years, the party has done intensive groundwork to enlarge its base in the north and in Bundelkhand areas.