The defeat of BSP candidate Bhimrao Ambedkar in Friday’s Rajya Sabha elections will “not have even an iota of impact” on her party’s “growing proximity” to the SP, party chief Mayawati declared on Saturday.
Speaking to reporters here, the former Chief Minister alleged that the BJP had misused the State machinery and created an “atmosphere of state terror” to engineer the defeat of her candidate as part of a “well-thought strategy” to drive a wedge between the SP and the BSP.
She referred to the incidents of cross-voting against the BSP, and the fact that party MLA Mukhtar Ansari and SP MLA Hari Om Yadav were prevented from voting as they were in jail.
“The BJP’s conspiracy will only prove costly for it. It has defeated us, but now BSP and SP workers will put in more efforts to prevent the BJP from coming to power in 2019,” she said.
Ms Mayawati offered a word of advice to Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav who she said had “committed a tiny lapse” due to his “political inexperience” in not giving preference to the BSP candidate during the voting and trusting the Independent MLA from Kunda, Raghuraj Pratap Singh, alias Raja Bhaiya.
Ms. Mayawati said, “He [Akhilesh Yadav] should have made every sacrifice to ensure the win of the BSP candidate. If I were in his place, I would have given first preference to ensure the win of the SP candidate and not of my candidate.”
She said the BJP’s “conspiracy” could have been defeated had Mr. Yadav not been trapped in a “web of falsehood” by Raja Bhaiya.
The BSP also suspended its MLA from Purva, Anil Singh, after he boasted about cross-voting in favour of the BJP.
Underlining that the SP-BSP ties would remain strong, Ms. Mayawati dismissed the BJP’s repeated references to the 1995 State guest house incident — when SP MLAs allegedly attacked her — to discredit the alliance.
Defending Mr. Yadav, she said he should not be held responsible for it as he was not politically active then.
Akhilesh responds
Hours later, Mr. Akhilesh Yadav responded by saying that the BJP’s conspiracy to prevent a Dalit [BSP’s candidate Bhimrao Ambedkar] from being elected, had “strengthened the unity” of the SP and the BSP for future elections.
“For this, I thank Ms. Mayawati ji ,” Mr. Akhilesh tweeted.
He also appeared to have deleted his tweet thanking Raja Bhaiya after the voting.
Ms. Mayawati’s display of commitment towards her tie-up with the SP assumes significance as it comes after the combined strategy of the SP, the BSP and the Congress failed to see her candidate through in the Rajya Sabha polls.
