Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Sunday alleged that the head of the Dalit outfit Bhim Army, Chandrashekhar Azad, was contesting in Varanasi against Prime Minister Narendra Modi as part of a “conspiracy” by the BJP to divide Dalit votes. This is not the first time that Ms. Mayawati had labelled the Bhim Army a BJP proxy. Mr. Azad started his campaign with a roadshow on Saturday. The SP-BSP-RLD alliance is yet to declare its candidate against Mr. Modi. In a statement, Ms. Mayawati said: “It is well-known that the organisation was founded by the BJP which used it as a front to carry out the Shabbirpur incident (Dalit-Thakur clash) in Saharanpur.”
Ms. Mayawati also alleged that the BJP had initially tried to send Mr. Azad as a mole into the BSP to get information leaked and later sent him to jail to cover-up the game but released him before the Lok Sabha election.
“It is very imperative in the national interest to dislodge autocratic, despotic anti-Dalit, OBC & minorities BJP from power. Pls ensure no vote goes waste. My Appeal,” Ms. Mayawati later tweeted.
She also said that small OBC and Dalit outfits were being formed by the BJP to hurt the mission of Bhimrao Ambedkar and to divide Dalit votes. Mr. Azad belongs to the same caste, Jatav--UP's largest Dalit community and the bedrock of the BSP-- as Ms. Mayawati.
Responding to her on Twitter, Mr. Azad said Ms. Mayawati was being misled by Satish Chandra Mishra, her general secretary and Brahmin face of the BSP, accusing him of orchestrating the exit of old Kanshiram loyalists.
“That’s why despite such protests, Brahmanical, anti-constitution people are being given ticket and sent to Parliament,” Mr. Azad said.
Mr. Azad further said that “manuvadi” general caste people who were against the “bahujan” (OBC and Dalits) were being given ticket while "missionary workers" were being dubbed as agents. “I want to ask Behenji, those savarnas who have got ticket (BSP), what has been their role in the bahujan mission,” Mr. Azad asked
