Bahujan Samaj Party supremo and former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, Mayawati, has raked up the old issue of separate statehood for western Uttar Pradesh.
She said that if the BSP formed its government, it would honestly work for creating a separate state in western UP.
Beginning her election campaign for western Uttar Pradesh from the GIC grounds in Saharanpur on Sunday, the BSP chief claimed that it would not be easy for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party to return to power because of the difference in their words and actions. She accused the BJP of lying to the public and working in the interest of the powerful.
Mayawati said that if the election was conducted fairly and transparently without any irregularities in the electronic voting machines EVMs), then mere theatrics and rhetoric of the ruling dispensation would not work.
“For the past few years, the BJP and its allies have been in power at the Centre and in most of the states. Owing to the casteist, capitalist, narrow and vindictive policies and style of working, and due to the significant difference in their words and actions, it now seems that it would not be easy for them to return to power at the Centre, provided these elections are free and fair," she said.
“The people of the country have understood that the real motive of those who promise good days to the poor is to benefit the capitalists. These parties run their organisations only with the support of capitalists and this has been proved through electoral bonds. Like Congress, the BJP has also politicised government investigating agencies,” the BSP chief said.
Mayawati said that under the rule of the Samajwadi Party in the state, the sense of brotherhood ended in UP, especially in its western parts, highlighting that there were no communal riots during the BSP tenure.
She said the sense of brotherhood among Jats and Muslims was broken during the SP government’s tenure. “During the tenure of the SP government, an atmosphere of fear prevailed in Muzaffarnagar, to the extent that Muslim representatives hesitated to contest elections. Due to this, a candidate from the extremely backward class had to be fielded. To ensure representation for the Muslim community, a candidate has been fielded from Haridwar this time,” she said.
Mayawati said that her party was contesting the Lok Sabha elections on its own instead of forging an alliance with any party and had given “appropriate share to all sections of the society” as far as ticket distribution is concerned. She said that tickets had been given to Prajapati in Muzaffarnagar, Jat in Bijnor, Rajput in Kairana and Muslim in Saharanpur to ensure all communities got proper representation.
The BSP has fielded Majid Ali from Saharanpur and Dara Singh Prajapati from Muzaffarnagar. Majid Ali, enjoys influence over the Muslim community in the area while Dara Singh Prajapati belongs to the Other Backward Classes community.
Mayawati highlighted the current challenges faced by farmers, contrasting them with the BSP’s rule when the problems of the farmers were promptly addressed, and the sugarcane prices were significantly increased.
Regarding recruitment in UP Police and other departments during the BSP rule, Mayawati said, “We gave jobs to the youth without putting any financial burden on them whereas the Bharatiya Janata Party government is misleading the people by giving them free food items.”
Mayawati will address her next public meetings in Rampur and Moradabad on April 15. On April 16, she will address public meetings in Nagina and Bijnor and in Ghaziabad, Baghpat and Amroha on April 21. On April 22, she will address public meetings in Gautam Buddha Nagar and Bulandshahr. She will be in Meerut and Hapur on April 23 to address public meetings in support of the party candidates.
The elections in west Uttar Pradesh are crucial for the BSP as the area has been its traditional stronghold.
BSP national coordinator Akash Anand, whom Mayawati had announced as her successor, earlier launched the election campaign from Nagina to mobilise the cadre for the Lok Sabha elections.
According to the election schedule, eight parliamentary constituencies of UP — Saharanpur, Kairana, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor, Nagina (SC), Moradabad, Rampur, and Pilibhit — in UP will vote in the first phase of Lok Sabha polls on April 19. Counting of votes will be held on June 4.
Earlier in the day, Mayawati accused the other mainstream parties of giving an “ostensible” respect to Dr BR Ambedkar and ignoring his followers.
In a statement, Mayawati said, “For narrow electoral interests, the ostensible respect given to Baba Saheb Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar, and ignoring his followers, exemplifies the proverb ‘mooh mein ram, bagal mein chhuri’. This is an old tradition, and it is still continuing, and it is necessary to remain cautious of this illusion."
Speaking about the Congress, she said, the party’s ‘garibi hatao’ slogan in the 1980s remained only a slogan because of lack of intention on its part.
“And now, the same condition prevails under the BJP government as the sky-rocketing inflation, poverty, unemployment and backwardness is worsening the lives of the people,” she said.
In a post in Hindi on X, Mayawati paid her tributes to Ambedkar on his birth anniversary and called him “a messiah of millions of poor, exploited, deprived and neglected people of the country”.
“Baba Saheb’s mission is incomplete, BSP will complete it. This is not just a slogan but a firm resolve and mission with which the party was formed, and came to power four times in the state. The present Lok Sabha elections too have to be fought with this goal," she said in another post.
