Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati hit out at the BJP led governments at the Centre and Maharastra on Saturday charging both of adopting double standards while acting against the accused in the recent clashes in Maharastra.
“The Centre as well as Maharashtra governments were adopting `casteist’ policy and in taking action and harassing Dalits and minorities,” charged Mayawati.
Reacting to the action taken against Dalits in connection with the recent violence in Maharashtra, the BSP chief accused the government of trying to save the real culprits.
``The Maharastra government was trying to shield two main accused in the violence that took place at Bhima-Koregaon near Pune in which one person was killed,” said Mayawati.
Earlier, Milind Ekbote of Samast Hindu Aghadi and Sambhaji Bhide, founder of Shiv Pratishthan Hindustan, were booked under relevant sections of SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act for allegedly orchestrating the violence on the anniversary celebrations of a battle fought 200 years ago in Bhima-Koregaon. Both have not been arrested so far.
In a BSP communiqué released in lucknow on Saturday afternoon, Mayawati further blamed the Centre for acting on `casteist’ lines and patronizing anti-Dalit or anti-minority mindset of the BJP-led state governments.
“Non-acceptance of holding a discussion on Bhima-Koregaon incident in Rajya Sabha (as demanded by the BSP) showed the casteist attitude of the Centre as well as saving Maharashtra government’s one sided action,” Mayawati charged.
“If the Maharashtra government failed in protecting the Dalits, the Centre failed to fix responsibility,” she added.
The BSP chief also claimed that despite an FIR being registered against two leaders, no arrests were made so far which proved that the BJP government in Maharashtra ws trying to save the culprits.
Mayawati claimed that people in Gujarat have given a befitting reply to the BJP in the recent Assembly elections and the people in Maharashtra too were fed-up with their government. “This will not stop here, as under the BJP governments, atrocities against Dalits, poor and backward castes are continuing,” she claimed.