Dedicating the Rashtra Prerna Sthal in Lucknow to the nation on former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s birth anniversary on December 25, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid rich tributes to social reformer Madan Mohan Malaviya and medieval ruler Maharaja Bijli Pasi, both of whom share their birth anniversary with the former PM.
“Today is the birth anniversary of Maharaja Bijli Pasiji. Lucknow’s popular Bijli Pasi Qila is not far from here. The Pasi community has proudly carried forward the legacy, valour, good governance and inclusiveness that Maharaja Bijli Pasi left behind,” Modi said. He also recalled that Vajpayee had released a commemorative postal stamp in honour of the ruler in 2000.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath joined the PM in praising the medieval ruler, describing him as “a valiant warrior of Lucknow who challenged foreign rule to protect India’s eternal traditions.” The Chief Minister added that the “double-engine government” was actively working to restore Bijli Pasi’s forts and honour the legacy of such brave warriors.
Bijli Pasi’s legacy
In Maharaja Bijli Pasi ki Aitihasikta, retired archaeology officer Rajkumar Itihaskar explains how Bijli Pasi got his name: “Seeing the alacrity in his physical body and a heavy thunderstorm on his birthday, his mother Bijna started calling him Bijli.” According to the book, his coronation took place on April 6, 1170.
Bijli Pasi is believed to have established Bijnagarh — present-day Bijnor — in memory of his mother and built 12 forts in the area while expanding his kingdom.
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Itihaskar writes that Bijli Pasi was engaged in a battle for supremacy with Raja Jai Chand of Kannauj and warriors Alha and Udal of Mahoba, who attacked the Dalit ruler’s kingdom after he rejected their demand for taxes.
“Bijli Pasi was popular because he took care of people from all castes and communities without any discrimination,” Itihaskar told The Indian Express.
Bijli Pasi was killed in 1194 while fighting Alha and Udal in Gaanjar, an area now popularly known as Gajaria Farms.
Bijli Pasi’s political significance
Modi’s tribute to a Dalit ruler — alongside Vajpayee and Malaviya, both Brahmins —is significant due to the social and political importance of Bijli Pasi and the Pasi community in Uttar Pradesh politics.
Pasis constitute around 15% of the state’s Scheduled Caste (SC) population and are the second-largest Dalit group after the Jatavs, who are considered the core voter base of the BSP.
“Pasis are warriors who protected the Hindu religion, fought against the Mughals, and sacrificed themselves while resisting conversion. The British even declared the community a ‘criminal tribe’ for defying them,” said former Union Minister Kaushal Kishore, who belongs to the Pasi community.
While the community was earlier seen as largely supporting the BSP, its allegiance appears to have shifted towards the BJP as the Mayawati-led party weakened.
During the BJP-BSP government led by Mayawati in 1997, a boundary wall was built around the Bijli Pasi Qila in an attempt to reach out to the community. The project was overseen by then BSP minister and current SP MP R K Chaudhary at the behest of BSP founder Kanshi Ram.
A year later, addressing a Pasi community convention in Lucknow, then UP Chief Minister Kalyan Singh approved five proposals. These included handing over the Bijli Pasi Qila to the community, allocating Rs 25 lakh to build a memorial within the fort premises, establishing a degree college in Bijli Pasi’s name, installing a statue of freedom fighter Uda Devi, and setting up a girls’ college named after her.
On November 16, 2000, then Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan released a postage stamp to honour Bijli Pasi’s valour.
The Adityanath government has also taken steps to commemorate the Dalit ruler’s legacy. “I thank PM Modi for paying tribute to Bijli Pasi and praising the Pasi community. The state government will develop the fort as a tourist destination, for which Rs 12 crore has been sanctioned. Some work has already begun,” Kishore said.
Itihaskar noted that most initiatives to honour Bijli Pasi and the Pasi community had been undertaken by BJP governments. “The community has largely backed the BJP but voted for the Opposition on the ‘save Constitution’ issue in last year’s Lok Sabha elections,” he said, adding that the community tends to support ruling parties rather than grooming its own leaders.
The Samajwadi Party (SP), traditionally supported by a Muslim-Yadav voter base, gained ground in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as five of its Pasi candidates — Awadhesh Prasad (Faizabad), R K Chaudhary (Mohanlalganj), Pushpendra Saroj (Kaushambi), Priya Saroj (Machhlishahr), and Daroga Saroj (Lalganj) — won their seats. On the other hand, three BJP candidates from the community — Ashok Kumar Rawat (Misrikh), Jai Prakash (Hardoi), and Kamlesh Paswan (Bansgaon) — also won.