For this purpose, the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (NREGA) is proving to be a potent political tool for the Congress. It is being used to not only inform the Dalits about the failure the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) government in implementing the project but also to apprise them of the benefits they have been deprived of by the state government.

A two-day training session organised by the District Congress unit on NREGA begun on Monday at Bithoor.

Similar training sessions have been organised in 822 different blocks of UP, and according to party sources, efforts are underway to hold maximum possible sessions before the Lok Sabha polls.

Rajya Sabha member and Congress National Secretary Pravin Rastrapal, who was the chief guest at the function, said: “If the government fails to implement the project properly, it is the responsibility of the Congress unit to do so because this project has been launched by the UPA government for the welfare of the people.”

Senior Congress leaders claim that NREGA will play a pivotal role in the election campaign to expose the dual approach adopted by Chief Minister Mayawati towards the Dalit. Over this issue, state Congress president Rita Bahuguna Joshi told The Indian Express: “Definitely we will highlight the failure of the BSP government in implementing various Central projects.” “As a result of the dual standard adopted by the BSP government, UP is among those states which have received the minimum benefits of NREGA.”

According to Joshi, the project is most useful for the Dalits, who work as labourers.

“If Mayawati claims to be a “Dalit ki beti”, then why hasn’t she not made the best use of the opportunity given to help the Dalits find a job,” added Joshi. She further said several other central projects have received a poor response from the BSP government, which will be projected during the election campaign.