In spite of this, the BJP lost the very constituency in which the temple is situated. A ground report by my colleague Supriya Sharma found that in Faizabad, many Dalit votes were not based on the Ram temple but on more mundane issues: caste-based reservations and the stray cows that had proliferated because of the laws banning beef. Even though many had voted BJP in the past, the decision was based on another bread-and-butter issue: free rations
A pre-poll survey by the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies-Lokniti thinktank found that only 8% of voters listed the new temple in Ayodhya as their primary issue. What were the top two concerns? Unemployment and inflation. In fact, almost half the respondents listed these as their primary concerns.
06/06/2024