With the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election due in a few weeks, there is just no end to the war of words between the Congress and Chief Minister Mayawati.
Taking exception to the remarks made by Ms. Mayawati targeting party general secretary Rajiv Gandhi, the Congress charged her of “misusing maximum funds” given by the Centre in constructing parks and erecting statues, including those of her own.
“There is no need to advice Rahul Gandhi. She is always hungry for funds despite receiving maximum funds from the Centre. It is a State where maximum funds have been misused,” Congress spokesman Rashid Alvi alleged.
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She has “misused funds in constructing parks and erecting statutes including her own, which is unheard of in our country,” Mr. Alvi said. The Congress is peeved at the comments of Ms. Mayawati that instead of indulging in “vote bank politics” and expressing his anger against the State government, Mr. Gandhi should vent his ire at the Central government.
The systematic campaign of Ms. Mayawati against the Congress is a sign that she is concerned at the prospect of the Congress hurting chances of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in the Assembly election.
Political observers are of the view that in the last Assembly election, Ms. Mayawati had put up a spectacular performance as she succeeded in garnering the support of the upper caste voters.
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However, the impressive gains made by the Congress in the 2009 Lok Sabha election were attributed to the success of the party in attracting sections of the upper castes and aggressive campaigning by Mr. Rahul Gandhi.