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BSP decision to go solo in Rajasthan may impact 60 seats in assembly elections
BSP chief Mayawati told news agency ANI that the Congress was giving her party only nine out of 200 Assembly seats. She blamed Congress for trying to wipe out the BSP.
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati’s announcement on Wednesday in Delhi that the party will go solo in the Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh assembly polls later this year will impact poll prospects of both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress in at least 60 seats in Rajasthan, according to results of past elections.
The BSP got 4% votes in 2013 in the Shekhawati-Command region, comprising six districts and 39 assembly constituencies. In 2008, the party polled 11% votes in the region. In the Dhundhad-Matsya-Merwara region, comprising nine districts and 66 seats, BSP got 11% votes in 2008 and 5% votes in 2013.
Across Rajasthan, BSP got 7.6% votes in 2008 and won six seats. In 2013, the party’s vote share dropped to 3.37% and the number of seats came down to three.
Mayawati told news agency ANI that the Congress was giving her party only nine out of 200 Assembly seats. She blamed Congress for trying to wipe out the BSP. “We have noticed that whenever we have contested an election in alliance, all our votes get transferred to Congress,” she said.
The Congress in Rajasthan did not react to this, saying the All India Congress Committee (AICC) will issue a reaction on this development.
Last week, after a meeting in Delhi to discuss the practicality, possibility and feasibility of alliance with other parties, Rajasthan Congress chief Sachin Pilot had said the party was open to alliances with other political parties such as BSP.
“Congress is approaching the elections with an open mind. We are open to alliances in Rajasthan and on the national level but it should be practical and respectable. The decision will be taken by the party president,” Pilot said.
In a meeting held in July this year and chaired by Congress president Rahul Gandhi, the Rajasthan Congress was unwilling to enter into an alliance with the BSP.
The party didn’t want to lose the Scheduled Castes’ votes to BSP. There are approximately 18% SCs in Rajasthan, with dominance in 60 assembly seats. In five districts of Ganganagar, Bikaner, Dholpur, Karauli and Bharatpur, the SC population is more than 21%.
Rajasthan BJP spokesperson Satish Poonia took a dig at the BSP’s announcement, saying the two parties were trying to forge an “unnatural alliance”. “Alliances where there are ideological differences are bound to fail,” Poonia added.
(With ANI inputs)
