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Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati today attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UP CM Akhilesh Yadav on the occasion of her 59th birthday.
The dalit rights' votary observed that the Modi-led central government had completed over seven months in office, yet the promise of 'acche din' (good days) had not come true.
Besides, she slammed the Akhilesh-led UP government for the alleged breakdown of the law and order machinery. She referred to the recent killing of a senior BSP leader in Aligarh, the hooch tragedy in Lucknow and the recovery of human corpses in Unnao district to buttress her point.
Mayawati also released the English and Hindi editions of her book 'A Travelogue of My Struggle-ridden Life and BSP Movement, Volume 10' on the occasion, which was marked by a large number of party leaders greeting her. She also released 'BSP Calendar' of 2015.
Addressing the media, she further announced the start of the party's election campaign for the forthcoming Delhi assembly polls due on February 7. BSP would be fighting all the 70 seats on its own. "Our party would strive for a good showing in the Delhi polls."
Training guns on Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal, she said the former had been a votary of the abolition of reservation in education and government jobs aimed at benefitting the poor, underprivileged, minorities etc.
Meanwhile, she claimed that owing to the "bad and pathetic" situation in UP, businesses were shying away from investing in the state and the CM and his officials had been forced to visit Agra, Delhi and other venues to solicit investment.
"Under such circumstances, the development and economic amelioration of the people can never gain momentum," she underlined.
Mayawati's birthday is celebrated as 'Peoples' Welfare Day' by the BSP rank and file.
During her previous regime in UP (2007-12), her birthdays used to be lavish affairs. However, after losing the state elections in 2012, the event has condensed to be low-key.
