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Mayawati attacks SP after Akhilesh meets rebel MLAs
LUCKNOW A day after six rebel Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLAs met Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav, party chief Mayawati on Wednesday lashed out at the SP, alleging that it was trying to project the meeting as a split
LUCKNOW A day after six rebel Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLAs met Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav, party chief Mayawati on Wednesday lashed out at the SP, alleging that it was trying to project the meeting as a split.
Mayawati accused the SP of “specialising in the narrow politics of hate, manipulation, malice and casteism”.
“The Samajwadi Party, which is an expert in narrow politics of despicable manipulations, malice and casteism, is publicising through the media that some BSP MLAs are breaking away to join the SP. This is a serious illusion,” the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister tweeted in Hindi.
On Tuesday, six rebel BSP MLAs — Chaudhary Aslam Ali, Hakim Lal Bind, Mohammad Mujtaba Siddiqui, Aslam Raini, Sushma Patel and Hargovind Bhargava — met SP chief Akhilesh Yadav in the party office. After the meeting, the group’s leader Aslam Raini announced that 11 rebel BSP MLAs would launch a new political party.
The BSP chief said the MLAs who met Akhilesh were suspended from the party long back for colluding with the SP and an industrialist during the Rajya Sabha elections for defeating a Dalit candidate.
“Had the SP been even a little bit honest towards these suspended MLAs, it would not have kept them in the lurch. The SP knows that if these MLAs join their party, then there will be a rebellion and disunity in SP, whose leaders are eager to cross over to the BSP,” she tweeted.
Mayawati said people were aware of the fact that the working style, character and face of the SP were anti-Dalit. The SP leaders were not ready to change their attitude, she alleged.
After coming to power in 2012, the SP government stopped all schemes launched by the previous BSP government for the welfare of the weaker sections, she said.
“The SP has always been anti-Dalit and they do not want to improve. This is why the SP government stopped the welfare work undertaken by the BSP. Bhadohi was not made a new district as Sant Ravidas Nagar,” she said.
The “new drama” enacted by the SP in meeting the suspended BSP MLAs and getting it publicised was more of a manoeuvre being done for the coming zila panchayat chairpersons’ and block pramukhs’ elections, she said.
Responding to Mayawati’s remarks, SP spokesperson Abdul Hafiz Gandhi said: “Mayawati ji’s allegations are baseless. MLAs are deserting her. She must ponder over why they are not ready to contest elections on a BSP ticket. They know BSP is a spent force and it never raises the issues of Dalits and oppressed people. Dalits and other weaker sections are now reposing faith in the leadership of Akhilesh Yadav ji and therefore Behan ji’s recent statement shows her desperation to keep intact her vote share.”
“She rarely speaks against BJP governments at the Centre and the state and attacks opposition parties only. We hope the people of Uttar Pradesh will reject her politics,” he added.
