BJP has alleged that Yadavs have takeover of the Uttar Pradesh police.
Law and order in Uttar Pradesh has been one of the main targets of the BJP in this assembly election in the state. Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken of what his party alleges is the Yadav takeover of the state police. He had also spoken of discrimination, which he called the biggest problem of the state. Three days ago, at a rally in Barabanki, PM Modi said, "Akhilesh-ji has turned police stations into Samajwadi Party offices. If you go to a police station, you will find the inspector and you will find 5-6 goondas".
At the high-profile Saifai police station in the Yadav stronghold Etawah, Gopal Singh Yadav -- the latest in a two-decade list of Yadav in-charges, with just a few exceptions -- refuses to discuss the merit of his 2-month-old posting.
But six men sitting on the porch of the police station, sipping tea, say they are more than willing to discuss the merits of the Prime Minister's allegation. The men, who came to the police station to pay a courtesy call, are from the adjoining Zafarpur gram panchayat. Three of them are Samajwadi Party leaders and all are Yadavs.
"Modi is not saying the right thing. If someone is talented, he can get posted anywhere. Whoever is talented, he or she will go... whatever the department is. What jobs have Modi given?" questions Uttam Yadav, who is in his early 20s.
There aren't any hard numbers in the public domain to support the BJP, or even Mayawati's allegations that Yadavs are being favoured in postings and recruitment in the state police. If it has had an effect on policing, there is just one number: In 2015, UP recorded the highest crime rate against Dalits across the country at over 8,300 incidents.
On Sunday, at his Fatehpur rally in Bundelkhand, PM Modi had also spoken of discrimination, calling it the state's biggest problem. "If you ask any Dalit whether they get opportunity, they say it's given to the Other Backward Castes and if you ask OBCs, they will say it's only given to Yadavs," he had said.
At Etawah's Rai Nagar village, a few kilometres from Saifai, a group of Jatav or Scheduled Caste villagers -- traditional Mayawati supporters -- second the claim.
Dharmendra Kumar, 23, says he appeared for police entrance exams in 2013, but did not get through. "If I were a Yadav, I would have got through. My friend got into the Lekhpal's written exam. Because he was not a Yadav, he was not selected in the viva," says Dharmendra, even though he admits that he has no evidence to back his claims. "Everything is based on caste considerations. If Modi comes here, at least things will be better."
"Mayawati has said many times that if there has been any favouritism in recruitments there will be an inquiry," says Narendra Nath, the BSP candidate from Etawah.
Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has not reacted to charges so far. Instead, he has focused on the improvement in police delivery mechanisms including these first responders -- dial 100 cars.