New Delhi, Aug 19 (IANS): Congress leader Jitin Prasada has written an open letter to all MLAs of Uttar Pradesh asking them to raise the issue of Brahmins' security during the Assembly session commencing Thursday.

"I appeal to all MLAs to rise above party to raise the issue of the Brahmin security and exploitation of the community and crime against Brahmins of your area in the Assembly," Prasada wrote in his open letter.

The Brahmins are key to the revival of the Congress, so the party is trying to woo the community which had been traditional Congress voters in the eighties but drifted away after the party lost its sheen.

The Congress, sensing the unrest in the community against the current government, has started to reach out to the community which has a strong presence in the state.

Jitin Prasada through his 'Brahmin Chetna Parishad', has been instrumental in making Brahmins' security a major issue. After this, almost all the parties have tried to raise the issue.

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) President Mayawati was successful in stitching together an umbrella alliance within communities, including the Brahmins in 2007, which catapulted her to the Chief Minister's chair with a clear majority in the Assembly. But later the Brahmins allied with the BJP. Due to some recent events, the community is said to be miffed with the Yogi government.

When the BJP leaders announced that economically weaker Brahmins will get insurance, Mayawati was the first to raise the issue of their security, saying "Before insurance Brahmins need security and respect in the state."

This statement came after BJP leader Umesh Dwivedi on Monday claimed that the party will provide medical insurance to poor Brahmins in the state. Reacting to it, Prasada said, "All Brahmins need security."

When Jitin Prasada demanded that there should be a holiday on Parshuram Jayanti, the Samajwadi Party went a step ahead and said that it will put up his huge statue.

Brahmin leaders in the Congress have now passed a resolution under which they will send a proposal to the party high command that a Brahmin should be projected as the Chief Ministerial candidate for the 2022 Assembly elections.

The Brahmin group, led by Acharya Pramod Krishna, who was the Congress Lok Sabha candidate from Lucknow in 2019, held a virtual meeting with leaders across the state and passed this resolution.

The Congress is alleging that Brahmins have been isolated in this government and it was the Congress which gave the state a Brahmin Chief Minister -- N. D. Tiwari. He was the last Brahmin Chief Minister and since then the Congress has been out of power for 30 years now.

The community constitutes about 12 per cent of the state's population but its influence is greater compared to its population, which can be key to the party's revival, said a Congress leader.