In this ancient Hindu pilgrim city of Varanasi, where the BJP won in the last two parliamentary elections, it is not the party nominee but Vajpayee whose name is everywhere, and on everyone's lips.

Many a constituency in this state has the same story to tell. People are disgusted with the incumbent BJP parliamentarians and might not have voted for them again if Vajpayee hadn't been the party's prime ministerial candidate. It was no wonder therefore that Vajpayee drew a mammoth crowd when he set off his party's campaign here. The huge gathering was in sharp contrast to the poor attendance at Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi's rally here last month. The crowds made it quite evident that they had come to listen to Vajpayee and no one else.Vajpayee focussed on Kargil in his speech, highlighting the valour and success of the Indian defence forces, and the crowds broke into applause repeatedly.

Even key speakers at the rally, including Uttar Pradesh chief minister Kalyan Singh and state BJP chief Raj Nath Singh, did not bother to introduce the party nominee Shankar Prasad Jaiswal, nor was he given a chance to speak. Towards the end of his 28-minute speech Vajpayee mentioned Jaiswal and then moved on to his government's "achievements".

Many voters in Varanasi do not recognise Jaiswal even though they sent him to the Lok Sabha in 1996 and 1998. "I do not know Jaiswal, neither am I a fan of the BJP. But since it is to make Vajpayee the country's prime minister, I will vote for the BJP candidate," said Shyamu, a rickshaw-puller.Vikram, a waiter in a small restaurant, said: "He is like any other MP, who forgets the voters once the elections are over; but my vote will go for Atalji, so I will vote for Jaiswal."

A local party functionary conceded:"There's no denying that Jaiswal has failed to live up to our expectations as nothing has been done for the development of this city, but right now we are quiet because the larger goal before us is to see Atalji back in the saddle." This ancient city is a classic example of neglect and apathy. "There has been no planning for improvement of the city, the roads are bad, there are no street lights while power cuts are frequent," complained Shiv Charan, a shopowner. This despite the fact that the BJP leads the state government as well.

Even the high-profile neighbouring constituency of the famous carpet belt, Mirzapur-Bhadohi, is a picture of neglect, yet the man on the street is willing to extend support to the BJP in the name of Vajpayee.The incumbent, Veerendra Singh, has performed no better than Jaiswal as far as constituency development is concerned. The electorate voted for him last time because it was sick of bandit leader-turned-politician Phoolan Devi, who evoked much sympathy and attractedinternational attention during her electoral debut in 1996. However, no sooner had she got elected as a Samajwadi Party nominee than she forgot about her electorate, making it easy for Veerendra Singh to wean them away before the following polls.

Many voters, though dissatisfied with Veerendra Singh's performance, desist from shifting their loyalties because of the Vajpayee factor. "I simply do not know what to do; I want to teach Veerendra Singh a lesson, but I want Vajpayee to win," said a carpet yarn dealer, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Both Jaiswal and Veerendra Singh had romped home with huge margins in 1998. But today neither is in a position to confidently claim his right over the constituency he holds and has to bank entirely on Vajpayee's appeal to see him through.

Besides, they face this time popular Congress party candidates in the field. Rajesh Misra, a popular student leader of the Banaras Hindu University here, is the Congress nominee against Jaiswal. And Sridhar Misra, aseptuagenarian Congress veteran, has been brought back to give Veerendra Singh a tough fight in Mirzapur- Bhadohi.

Caste too could play a part in their undoing. The fact that the BJP nominated non-Brahmins in these two constituencies did not go down well with the dominant upper caste. The Congress party has cleverly fielded Brahmins in both. So the BJP candidates can only hope to romp home riding piggyback on the larger-than-life image of Vajpayee.