Criticising Mayawati for using Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar’s birthday to kick-start her political campaign for 2017 assembly election, the state unit of Bharatiya Janata Party said that BSP has reduced Baba Sahib as vote catcher. “This is unfortunate that Mayawati has done politics and talked about her party’s ambitions in the function organised to pay tributes to Dr B R Ambedkar on his 125th birth anniversary,” BJP spokesman Vijay Bahadur Pathak said here on Tuesday.
He said that the BSP, which has lost is base in UP, was trying to win back dalits by invoking Dr Ambedkar’s name. This is unfortunate that Mayawati has restricted Baba Saheb to a small party and a particular caste whereas Indians have faith in Constitution and its maker. But BSP wants to project Baba Saheb only as its own icon,” he said.
“It is unfortunate that Mayawati alleged that all political parties were trying to take political mileage from Dr Ambedkar’s birth anniversary but what she has done herself - she has sought votes from Muslims and others from a non-political platform,” he said. Pathak said that Mayawati has told Muslims not to commit mistake that had committed in 2014 lok Sabha polls and vote for BSP in 2017. “This shows Mayawati can use any platform for her political gain,” he said. Pathak said that BJP always maintained decorum and had never used apolitical platform for political purpose.” BJP is holding ‘ Samajik Samrasta’ diwas programme on the birth anniversary of Dr Ambedkar to spread his ideology rather than doing politics,” he said.