The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), founded by Babu Kanshi Ram with the dream of empowering the Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBCs), once held promise in Punjab—a state with one of the highest SC populations in India, accounting for around 33% of the electorate. Despite this demographic advantage, the BSP has been unable to convert this support base into electoral victories in recent decades, neither in the Punjab Assembly elections nor in the Lok Sabha polls. This decline reflects a complex interplay of organizational weakness, leadership crisis, and shifting caste politics.
Babu Kanshi Ram, himself a native of Punjab, envisioned the BSP as a platform to politically empower Dalits and marginalized communities. In the 1990s, the BSP showed considerable promise in Punjab, even winning seats in the assembly and forming alliances that challenged traditional parties like the Congress and Akali Dal. At one point, the party emerged as a third alternative in the state’s bipolar political structure. Kanshi Ram’s charisma, grassroots activism, and deep connection with the community lent the party authenticity and energy.
However, after Kanshi Ram’s declining health and subsequent death, the party struggled to maintain its momentum. Mayawati, who took over the leadership, remained focused on Uttar Pradesh, leaving Punjab without strong state-level leadership or a robust party structure. The absence of local Dalit leaders with mass appeal and political clout resulted in the party becoming increasingly irrelevant in state politics. Organisational erosion, infighting, and a failure to adapt to changing political dynamics led to the collapse of the BSP’s ground game in Punjab.
Punjab’s Dalit vote is not monolithic. The community is divided among various sub-castes such as Ravidasias, Mazhabi Sikhs, Valmikis, and others—each with their own socio-religious affiliations and preferences. Over time, other political parties such as the Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) began to successfully woo different segments of the Dalit population, offering symbolic representation, community-specific welfare measures, and direct engagement through local leaders. This fragmentation weakened the BSP’s claim as the sole representative of the Dalits.
One of the biggest strategic failures of the BSP in Punjab has been its inability to evolve with the socio-political aspirations of the new generation of Dalits. Kanshi Ram’s era was marked by a radical, consciousness-raising approach to Dalit politics. In contrast, the party today lacks ideological dynamism and youthful leadership to connect with today’s educated and politically aware Dalit youth, who seek dignity, employment, and systemic inclusion—not just symbolic representation.
Given that Punjab has the highest proportion of SC population among all Indian states, the BSP had a unique opportunity to emerge as a dominant political force. Instead, the party’s stagnation and alienation from grassroots activism have pushed it to the margins. Despite contesting elections regularly, the BSP has been unable to even retain its deposit in many seats. Its alliances, including one with Shiromani Akali Dal in the 2022 Assembly elections, have also failed to revive its fortunes—primarily because these tie-ups appear more tactical than ideological, thereby confusing and disillusioning its core base.
The story of BSP in Punjab is a classic case of unfulfilled potential. What began as a powerful movement to politically awaken the Bahujan Samaj has today become a party struggling for survival in Kanshi Ram’s own homeland. Unless the BSP reinvents itself with strong local leadership, ideological clarity, and grassroots connection, Kanshi Ram’s vision of political empowerment for the marginalized in Punjab may remain an unfulfilled dream. The void left by BSP’s decline has led to other parties co-opting Dalit issues—but none with the original fervor and mission that Kanshi Ram once stood for.