Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati has decided to celebrate her 61st birthday on Januray 15 sans pomp and show due to the ongoing Vidhan Sabha elections.
A senior party functionary said, “There won’t be any cake or gifts for Behanji and the occasion will be celebrated on a low key. The BSP is known to celebrate Mayawati’s birthday in a grand way with cakes weighing as much as her age and huge garlands. Before her birthday, party workers launch a massive fundraising campaign across the state. Each MP and MlA were given a target to collect a certain amount of money. Every year before her birthday, the party used to launcha month-long campaign and later party leaders handed the BSP chief a money bag with crores of rupees as a gift on her birthday. The money was used for the party’s election campaign. After cutting the cake, Mayawati addressed party leaders and workers. Many eyebrows were raised in the past when the Dalit leader was presented a garland of currency notes. However, the birthday celebrations will not be the same this year as it will a violation of Model Code of Conduct(MCC). But this time, Ms Mayawati could address a press conference.
The BSP leader has issued strict directives to the party workers and leaders to follow the election model code of conduct. BSP state unit president Ramachal Rajbhar, who is himself contesting the assembly polls, said here today that the model code of conduct has come into force.” The party cannot celebrate the birthday of ‘behanji’ with the usual gaiety. We have decided to celebrate her birthday in a simple manner in each district,” he said.
Another BSP leader, who did not wish to be named, however,said demonetisation has also played a spoilsport for this year’s birthday of Behanjee.
“There is cash crunch post-demonetisation and people with large cash have come on the radar of the Income Tax, Enforcement Directorate and other agencies. The donation campaign has been shelved. If a leader wishes to give fund, he can deposit it in the party coffer,” a zonal coordinator said on condition of anonymity. As the celebrations will be a low-key affair, the party might direct workers to take a pledge to ensure BSP’s victory in the assembly elections to keep them in an upbeat mood, an office-bearer said. During her 60th birthday in 2016, Ms Mayawati had asked party workers to keep the event simple and connect with the common people in a meeting with senior party leaders, zonal and divisional coordinators. She also asked party office-bearers to ensure that there was “nothing loud”. The BSP has been celebrating the day as ‘Jankalyankari Diwas’ or Public Welfare Day and party leaders are asked to connect with the needy and the poor. They also visit Dalit villages and hospitals and distribute fruits and blankets among the poor. Mayawati’s birthday celebrations in the past have been extravagant often courting controversy over the expenses incurred. In 2010, when she was the chief minister, opposition parties attacked her over the gift of a cash garland worth Rs 25 crore given by party leaders on her birthday. Besides, during her government in the state, an engi neer was lynched to death in Auriyya for not paying donation for the birthday.