- SP leader Akhilesh Yadav expanded PDA to include Brahmins.
- Yadav stated ‘P’ in PDA now also means ‘Pandit’.
- SP promised Brahmins representation, accusing BJP of alienation.
- Yadav also alleged BJP’s temple donation irregularities.
With the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly election on the horizon, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav has signalled a broader social coalition by expanding the party’s signature PDA formula to include Brahmins. The move marks a strategic shift as the SP looks to widen its support base beyond its traditional alliance of backward classes, Dalits and minorities. Addressing a gathering of Brahmin representatives at the party headquarters in Lucknow, Yadav said the “P” in PDA also stands for “Pandit”, while accusing the BJP of alienating the community and promising greater representation under a Samajwadi Party government.
SP Looks To Broaden Its PDA Coalition
The PDA formula, representing Pichhda (Backward), Dalit and Alpsankhyak (Minority), has been central to the Samajwadi Party’s electoral strategy since the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. The social coalition gained significant traction during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, when the SP emerged as the largest opposition party in Uttar Pradesh by winning 37 parliamentary seats. Beyond its traditional Yadav-Muslim vote base, the party also made gains among non-Yadav Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and sections of Dalit voters, as per reports.
The victory of Dalit leader Awadhesh Prasad from Faizabad, which includes Ayodhya, became one of the party’s most notable electoral successes and reinforced the effectiveness of the PDA strategy.
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‘P In PDA Also Means Pandit’: Akhilesh Tells Brahmin Gathering
Speaking at a Prabuddh Sammelan organised to mark the birth anniversary of socialist leader Janeshwar Mishra, Akhilesh Yadav sought to directly address the Brahmin community.
“Critics who invent new expansions of PDA after electoral setbacks should know that the ‘P’ in PDA stands for Pandit and that ‘PD’ is also shorthand for Pandit,” he said, as per reports.
The event, attended by Brahmin representatives from across Uttar Pradesh, was held at the SP headquarters after the party reportedly did not receive permission to organise the programme at Janeshwar Mishra Park in Gomti Nagar. The gathering echoed with slogans of “Ganga Maiya Ki Jai” and “Parshuram Bhagwan Ki Jai.”
Yadav alleged that the BJP had committed “atrocities” against Brahmins and assured the community that a future Samajwadi Party government would provide them with “proper representation and respect.”
Referring to the 2020 encounter killing of gangster Vikas Dubey and alleging restrictions imposed on a Shankaracharya, including being denied a ritual dip at the Triveni Sangam and facing an alleged “fake Pocso case”, Yadav claimed the self-respect of Brahmins had been undermined.
Targets BJP Over Ram Temple Donation Allegations
Akhilesh Yadav also attacked the BJP over the alleged misappropriation of donations meant for the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
Describing it as the party’s “biggest sin”, he alleged that when the issue came to light, only lower-level individuals were arrested while those allegedly responsible at higher levels escaped scrutiny.
According to Yadav, the scale of the alleged irregularities suggested that senior figures must have been involved. He questioned how such a development could have gone unnoticed despite Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s frequent visits to Ayodhya.
The BJP has not responded to Yadav’s latest allegations.
