Maya attacks BJP and SP, says she is fighting to form majority govt

Ambedkarnagar (UP), Feb 19: BSP chief Mayawati on Saturday alleged that people, especially those belonging to minority communities, are living in fear under the BJP government and promised that her party will work to ensure social justice to all if voted to power in Uttar Pradesh.

Addressing a rally here, the former chief minister also accused the SP of working against the interests of SC and ST. “Dalits, Backwards and especially Muslim communities have been living in fear and terror under this government. Harassment on the basis of caste and religion will not be allowed in any case under BSP rule,” the BSP supremo said. “We are fighting to form a majority government like 2007 and to get rid of the casteist, narrow-minded, arrogant and dictatorial rule of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

You will have to support BSP, the only party that cares for all sections of society to ensure this,” Mayawati said. The BSP came to power in 2007, winning 206 assembly seats of the total 403. Its seat count was reduced to 80 in 2012 and just 19 seats in the 2017 election. Unlike the ruling BJP and the SP, the BSP’s campaigning in UP has remained subdued.

However, her party leaders insist that Mayawati has a loyal voter base and she had kept away from the limelight even before her 2007 victory. Mayawati said the Akhilesh Yadav government cancelled the provision of reservation for SCs and STs in government tenders which was first introduced by the BSP. The SP also tore a bill for reservation in promotion and stalled its passage in Lok Sabha, she alleged.

The SP government also stopped the scholarship for students of SC/ST communities and changed the names of places named after Dalit icons and cited that Ravidas Nagar was renamed Bhadohi, Mayawati alleged. – PTI