New Delhi: The location is Gauriganj, a major town in Amethi district of Uttar Pradesh. Sarvesh Pandey is on the stage, making an impassioned speech, urging “Savarnas to show their strength where it counts most: at the polling booth”. It was precisely the simmering anger of the Savarna communities, he argues, that caused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to cede space to the Samajwadi Party in the recently concluded Legislative Council (MLC) elections and compelled the government to submit in the Supreme Court that it would review the new anti-discrimination guidelines introduced by the University Grants Commission (UGC).“The general classes don’t need to do anything – just show your vote ki takat (power of your vote). Why should we face lathis for the BJP at the booths? Why not for our own samaj (social group)?” Pandey asked the audience.Pandey is the founder of the ‘Savarna Army’, an outfit championing the cause of communities that broadly encompass the elites in the traditional caste hierarchy: the Brahmins, Bhumihars, Rajputs, Kayasthas, Banias and associated groups. He was addressing a “Savarna Mahasammelan” in Amethi on November 10, where the core demands included the complete rollback of the 2026 UGC guidelines, the establishment of a Savarna commission, the abolition of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, and the restructuring of reservations based strictly on economic criteria.At the centre of Pandey’s crosshairs is the BJP, which he accuses of failing to take decisive action to rescind the UGC guidelines that sections of the elite castes feel put them at a severe disadvantage.If the BJP government could successfully enact a legislative amendment in 2018 to overturn a Supreme Court ruling that sought to modify the provisions of the Prevention of Atrocities Act, why was it incapable of doing the same for the UGC guidelines, Pandey asked assertively. Instead, he noted, the government was hiding behind the formation of a review committee.Also read: Slurs, Beatings, Thievery, Threats: How Dominant Caste Men Disrupted Dalit Weddings in UPSeeking to stoke a sense of grievance among his audience, Pandey pointed out that whether in the Assembly elections of 2012 and 2017 or in the Lok Sabha polls of 2014, 2019 and 2024, elite-caste voters had backed the BJP unconditionally – “but at what cost?”“The BJP won elections because people from the Pandit, Thakur, Baniya and Bhumihar communities stood steadfastly at polling booths – wearing their muretha (traditional turbans) – in support of the party. Now, they are forcing us to stage protests and face police lathi-charges once again. The BJP’s rise or fall won’t cause us any existential loss; it will only affect its MLAs and those who have been reaping the political cream,” Pandey asserted.Sarvesh Pandey, right, the founder of the ‘Savarna Army’. Photo: Social media.The gathering in Amethi offers a glimpse of the mounting political heat the ruling BJP is facing from its core vote bank just months ahead of the 2027 Assembly election. The UGC controversy is the undisputed focal point.The government’s submission in the Supreme Court that it will establish a high-level committee to review the 2026 UGC guidelines has done little to appease this section of protesters, who demand, instead, a complete reversal of most of the crucial social-justice provisions enacted since independence.Ever since the BJP stormed to power in the country with a full majority in 2014, it has constructed a formidable social coalition in India’s most populous state, built around the formula that Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya outlined as, “Sau mein saath hamara, chalees mein batwara hai – aur batware mein bhi hamara hai” (60 out of 100 (voters) are ours; the remaining 40 are divided, and even in those 40, we have a share).This game hinges on simultaneously dividing and polarising communities on caste and communal grounds. The “60” refers to the population of UP excluding Jatavs, Yadavs, and Muslims, who together form 40% of the population. But the BJP’s formula undeniably hinges on its primary voters belong to the ‘upper’ castes, the so-called non-Yadav OBCs, and the Dalit Hindu groups except the Jatavs – though the party has also dented these support bases of the Samajwadi Party (Yadav voters) and BSP (Jatav voters).However, maintaining a fragile balance between the elite castes, OBCs, and Dalits has become difficult for it of late, particularly due to vocal outrage from Brahmin and other groups, whose assertiveness has grown as the BJP’s years in power have extended. These groups now aggressively argue that the BJP’s pursuit of the numerically dominant backward and Dalit voters has led it to neglect its core constituencies.Ruling party leaders from these communities are feeding into the sense of betrayal and disappointment, and saying that the new UGC guidelines introduced in January – in particular the inclusion of OBCs within the purview of anti-discriminatory action – were unnecessary and a self-created problem.“There was no such demand by OBCs, yet the government went ahead and introduced these guidelines,” said a BJP leader, requesting anonymity.Also read: Caste or Economic Criteria? An Outdated Choice in the Reservation DebateThe BJP, under Chief Minister Adityanath, returned to power in the state in 2022, albeit with a depleted majority. Following the electoral reverses in the 2024 general election – which many party leaders attributed to the spread of the idea among Dalits that if the party secured “400 seats“, it would amend the constitution, and thereby dilute or entirely do away with caste-based reservations – the BJP has constantly been under pressure on the caste question.For over four decades, elite-caste Hindus have viewed the BJP as their natural political home, attracted by its Hindutva ideology and the assurance of political clout against OBC- and Dalit-led parties, such as the Samajwadi Party and the BSP. Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the party further cemented this bond by overseeing the Ram temple’s construction in Ayodhya and implementing the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) quotas for the general category.However, the intense agitation surrounding the UGC guidelines points to a growing fissure in the BJP’s social coalition. Members of these groups, the BJP’s traditional backers, are openly airing their grievances and asserting their collective identity more forcefully.In January this year, the Supreme Court stayed the implementation of the new UGC guidelines, ruling that the earlier University Grants Commission (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2012, would remain in force until further notice. Under the revised framework, the UGC widened the ambit of its guidelines by including OBC and EWS students, alongside the existing Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe categories.In its prima facie observations, the Supreme Court noted that several provisions suffered from distinct ambiguities, making the possibility of misuse difficult to rule out. Petitioners challenging the 2026 guidelines argued that Clause 3(c) – which defines “caste-based discrimination” – was drafted in an exclusionary and restrictive manner. They contended that individuals belonging to unreserved or general categories were left entirely without a remedy under the new framework, even when facing institutional bias or discrimination in higher education.They also argued that the new regulations rested on the unfounded presumption that caste-based discrimination is strictly unidirectional and can never operate against persons from non-reserved groups.Harsh Dubey, a 24-year-old NEET aspirant, was among the prominent student activists protesting in Delhi in July who initially demanded the abolition of reservations. He subsequently changed his position and began pitching for ‘reform’ in the reservation policy. At the time, Dubey and his delegation met with Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak and Union Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda as the government scrambled to contain the agitation amid broader anger over competitive exam paper leaks.Today, Dubey remains deeply critical of the government’s ambiguous and indecisive stance. “They should explicitly state that these guidelines will not be implemented. We demand a permanent rollback, not vague assurances that can be easily walked back,” he told The Wire.Although outfits that share this view – particularly those which claim to represent Brahmin interests – are vocal in their opposition to the UGC rules and are threatening to punish the BJP at the ballot box, how significantly this anger will impact election outcomes remains a complex question. Palpable dissatisfaction with the government does not automatically translate into a shift toward the main opposition alliance of the Samajwadi Party and the Congress. This is especially true given the intricate nature of Uttar Pradesh’s jati dynamics and the distinct character and aspirations of each caste group.Also read: Over 80% Savarna Faculty, 2,600+ Reserved Posts Vacant: What New RTI Data Reveals About Caste in IITsThe traditional higher castes, though around 15–20% of the state’s population, disproportionately hold power and authoritative positions in all sectors of life, including the judiciary and media. They are also economically better off than backward-caste and Dalit groups. Regardless of which party forms the government, these dominant communities largely retain their social, cultural and institutional hegemony.However, no party can climb to victory without the numerical strength – and hence support – provided by at least a section of the other communities living in the state.While this political power is the primary vehicle for social and economic upward mobility for large sections of OBCs and Dalits, the elite castes are fighting to retain and preserve their dominance. Consequently, the latter social groups view the BJP as their safeguard against parties led by Dalits and OBCs, which champion social justice and seek to challenge their hegemony by capturing state power.More importantly, these caste communities share deep ideological ties with the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), while harbouring distrust toward the Samajwadi Party – a party whose core remains anchored in Yadav-Muslim consolidation and which is now expanding its appeal to non-Yadav OBCs and Dalits under the PDA (Pichda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak) banner.In other words, the BJP, and not any other party, gives the elite castes unfiltered, direct access to power and continued cultural dominance.Dubey, who hails from Akhilesh Yadav’s Lok Sabha constituency of Kannauj, affirms his ideological alignment with the BJP. Yet, he notes that if he chooses to withhold his vote from the party, he is far more likely to sit out the election or press None of the Above (NOTA) than to cast a ballot for the Samajwadi Party.Nonetheless, he predicts that if the BJP refuses to roll back the UGC guidelines, the political fallout will be severe.File photo – Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav with his wife Dimple Yadav during a roadshow in Kannauj. Credit: PTI“The Savarna voter is alienated. These are communities that historically delivered 100% of their votes to the BJP. Even if half of that base shifts or abstains, the entire political math changes given the narrow margins of victory in elections,” Dubey claims.“Reservation reform” activists also point to the recent MLC elections for 11 Teachers’ and Graduates’ constituencies – where the Samajwadi Party picked up two extra seats and the BJP dropped one – as evidence of deep-seated discontent among the general castes. According to reports in Dainik Bhaskar, numerous ballot papers surfaced in these polls where voters had handwritten the slogan “UGC Roll Back” to send a message to the ruling party.The discontent over the UGC issue also burst into the open when lawyer Rohit Tiwari ‘Kaka’ was slapped by a local BJP leader and municipal councillor in Prayagraj, Vinay Mishra ‘Seetu’, on November 1 moments after the former interrupted the speech of Deputy CM Maurya and demanded that he address the UGC issue.Organised by a so-called “Brahmin outfit”, the Rashtriya Parshuram Sena (Brahmavahini), the event became a flashpoint after BJP MLA from Allahabad North, Harsh Vardhan Bajpai, publicly posted in Tiwari’s support, declaring that “every Brahmin and upper-caste individual has the constitutional right to oppose the UGC.” Rohit Tiwari was hailed as a hero by these caste groups.Vimal Tiwari, president of the Rashtriya Parshuram Sena (Brahmavahini), told The Wire that the community will accept nothing short of a complete rollback of the rules. “The community remains deeply aggrieved with the BJP until these guidelines are withdrawn. Colleges and universities belong to everyone. A student is simply a student and should not be reduced to their caste identity,” Tiwari said, warning that the 2026 UGC regulations, in their current shape, threaten the academic and professional futures of general-category youth.Also read: Supreme Court Stay on UGC Regulations Shows the Power of Brahmins’ WrathBut what if the BJP does not roll them back before the election? Will Tiwari ask his supporters to back the opposition parties? He is not sure if they will follow such a command. Tiwari argues that when the Cockroach Janta Party staged a dharna at Jantar Mantar against paper leaks, opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, rushed their leaders to the site in solidarity.However, when general-caste activists protested against the UGC guidelines and for reforms in the reservation policy, opposition parties stayed silent.“When we faced lathis, they did not say a word. They have also not cleared the air over what position they have on the issue,” said Vimal Tiwari. In such a situation, Tiwari says those disgruntled with the BJP will prefer to stay home or press NOTA.The website of the Rashtriya Parashuram Sena Brahmavahini says it is a “strong national organisation dedicated to protecting the identity, rights, culture and dignity of the Brahmin community”. It says it is based on the “ideals of Lord Parashuram: justice, truth, balance, and the protection of dharma (righteousness).”Activists claiming to represent upper-caste interests point to senior Samajwadi Party leader and Akhilesh Yadav’s uncle, Ramgopal Yadav, publicly endorsed the UGC guidelines, arguing that those opposing them were standing against the interests of OBCs, Dalits and Adivasis. They also note that Pallavi Patel, an Apna Dal (Kamerawadi) leader and a Samajwadi Party MLA, had organised a protest march in Lucknow in support of the new UGC regulations.BJP leaders acknowledge the volatility of the situation. Shortly after the government informed the Supreme Court that it would review the rules, party leaders took to social media and emphasised that the administration would ensure no student suffers discrimination due to “imbalances” in the regulations and that the dignity and interests of every student remain paramount.When pressed by TV channel Aaj Tak recently on whether the government was taking a step back on the UGC issue, UP Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak maintained caution: “I want to assure all the youth of my state: our government will not permit any harm to befall any young person or student. I stand shoulder-to-shoulder with students from every section of society. The government stands with you.”Pathak reiterated a core belief among BJP leaders that voters belonging to Brahmin, Bania, Rajput and other socially adjacent groups will ultimately find it impossible to cross over to the Samajwadi Party in significant numbers. “The BJP is actively championing Sanatan Sanskriti. Will people devoted to Sanatan ever forget who ordered police firing on karsevaks in Ayodhya? The Samajwadi Party is a party driven by casteism and minority appeasement. They have no moral claim on the Brahmin vote, nor do they possess the courage to ask for it,” Pathak said.Shyam Prakash Dwivedi, former Kashi prant vice-president of the BJP, echoed the sentiment that the Brahmin community views the party not merely as a political platform, but as “family.” However, Dwivedi – who also heads the Brahman Samaj Utthan Seva Samiti, which has members in several states – cautions that if the UGC guidelines are not scrapped, containing grassroots anger will prove immensely difficult.“The Savarna samaj is bound to an ideology and has dedicated itself to society and the nation. But sometimes, ideological loyalty fractures when it comes to the future of one’s children. While I personally won’t go anywhere else, I cannot police what individuals decide to do inside the polling booth,” Dwivedi admitted.Meanwhile, Rohit Tiwari ‘Kaka’, the lawyer who was slapped in Prayagraj, said that while activists will continue pressing the BJP for a rollback, holding other parties accountable was equally vital. Urging caution against rushing into the opposition’s arms, Tiwari said in a recent video message: “We may press NOTA, but we will not blindly give our votes to the Congress or the Samajwadi Party. These parties have deliberately evaded clarifying their position on this issue.”Savarna Samaj and Brahman Parivar members demand withdrawal of the UGC’s equity rules in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, January 29, 2026. Photo: PTI.For its part, the Samajwadi Party welcomed the Supreme Court’s stay, with party chief Akhilesh Yadav asserting that true justice must never inflict injustice, while insisting that the language of the law as well as its intent must remain clear. Mayawati also defended the stay, saying that the guidelines had created an atmosphere of social tension and that the UGC should have taken all sides into confidence before implementing the new rules and given appropriate representation to the upper castes in the probe committees.There is also an argument that the anger of the traditional social elites will eventually fade away. For instance, the same communities also protested the introduction of OBC reservations decades ago, but eventually learned to live with it and are today themselves beneficiaries of the EWS quota.However, NEET aspirant Dubey argues that the UGC draft represents a breaking point, compounding years of suppressed grievances over reservations and the Prevention of Atrocities Act. He compares it to a coiled spring that snaps back violently after being compressed repeatedly.“Everyone assumed the Savarna population was docile and incapable of sustained protest. But this time, we took to the streets. We have compromised time and again, but how much longer can we remain silent? We were forced to speak up,” Dubey said, harping on alleged passivity of the community, which has in fact hit the streets on multiple occassions, even in recent years.Should the BJP bend and fully roll back the guidelines, it risks triggering an immediate counter-mobilisation among OBC communities – playing directly into the hands of an opposition already aggressively courting backward castes. And if it doesn’t, it could approach election season dealing with the discontent of several caste groups at once. For instance, the promise of Scheduled Caste status to OBC Nishads still remains unfulfilled and is likely to be brought up by its ally, Nishad Party.Whether upper-caste voters choose to punish the BJP at the ballot box, eventually rally back to its support, or simply abstain, what is already evident is that the ongoing agitation is denting its core narrative of Hindu consolidation ahead of next year’s key election.Omar Rashid is an independent journalist.