Mayawati

Cong doing politics of deception over 'disrespect' to Ambedkar: Mayawati

Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Sunday questioned the sincerity of the Congress' protests over the alleged "disrespect" to B R Ambedkar in Parliament, saying the party that ignored and undermined his struggle for the country is engaged in "politics of pure deception and selfishness". She also hit out at the BJP, alleging the ruling party and the Congress are cut from the same cloth when it comes to taking Ambedkar's name for vote bank politics. "In reality, saints, gurus and great men born in the Bahujan Samaj including Baba Saheb got full respect and honour only when there was a BSP government, which these casteist parties cannot digest," the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said in a series of posts on X. After the showdown inside and outside parliament during the winter session, the Congress has said it will hold protest marches against Union Home Minister Amit Shah, whom it has accused of "insulting" Ambedkar with his remarks last Tuesday, and observe a weeklong campaig

Mayawati calls for nationwide protest on Dec 24 over Shah's Ambedkar remark

In a series of posts on X, Mayawati said that Shah's remarks have hurt the hearts of the people

BJP, others two sides of same coin in not respecting Ambedkar: Mayawati

Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati on Friday hit out at the BJP and other opposition parties, saying they are "two sides of the same coin in not respecting Baba Saheb Ambedkar". "The words used by BJP's Amit Shah in Parliament about the messiah of Dalits and other neglected classes, Param Pujya Baba Saheb Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar, has deeply hurt the sentiments of these classes. In such a situation, he should definitely repent by taking back those words," said Mayawati in a post on 'X' in Hindi. The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister's assertion comes amid the ongoing tussle between the ruling BJP and the opposition parties over Union Home Minister Amit Shah's remarks on Ambedkar in the Rajya Sabha earlier this week. "By the way, it is impossible to deny that the social, economic and political conditions of the Congress, BJP and their allies are constantly getting worse due to their narrow-minded and casteist attitude towards the interests and welfare of Baba Saheb Dr Ambedkar and hi

Mayawati asks parties to back ONOE bills; slams SP, Cong on reservation

BSP chief Mayawati on Sunday attacked the Congress and the Samajwadi Party, saying they should not speak on reservations as they colluded in opposing legislation giving quota in promotions to Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) when the Congress-led UPA was in power. Addressing a press conference, she also backed the Centre's bills on 'one nation- one election', stressing it will reduce expenses and ensure public welfare works continue uninterrupted. She urged other parties to also support the measure. Mayawati demanded that reservations for SC, ST and OBC be included in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution to prevent any tampering. Central and state laws listed in the Ninth Schedule are exempt from judicial review. During the discussion on the Constitution in Lok Sabha, the ruling side and the opposition, especially the Congress and the Samajwadi Party, to woo Dalit and OBC voters, have said a lot of "baseless" things about reservation issue in which there is "not eve

BSP cadre may marry anyone cutting across party lines, says Mayawati

BSP chief Mayawati has refuted reports that a leader was expelled from the party for getting his son married to the daughter of an SP legislator. She asserted that the BSP cadre was free to marry anyone cutting across party lines. Bahujan Samaj Party's (BSP) Rampur district unit president Surendra Sagar's son recently tied the knot with the daughter of Samajwadi Party (SP) MLA from Alapur in Ambedkar Nagar district Tribhuvan Dutt. Earlier, Dutt was associated with the BSP but joined the SP before the 2022 UP Assembly elections. In a series of posts on X in Hindi on Friday night, Mayawati said Sagar and the current district president of BSP in Rampur, Pramod Kumar, were expelled from the party due to a simmering dispute between them and had nothing to do with the marriage. "The quarrel between former party president of Rampur district Surendra Sagar and current party president Pramod Kumar was at its peak due to which the party's work was suffering. Both of them were expelled and it

Parliament must function in broader interest of people: Mayawati

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president Mayawati on Saturday called on the Centre and the Opposition to ensure that the Winter Session of Parliament focuses on the country's pressing problems rather than partisan clashes. The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister's appeal stemmed from controversies such as allegations against the Adani Group and the Sambhal mosque survey dispute, among others, which led to disruption in proceedings in both houses of Parliament this week. "Both the government and opposition should ensure that the ongoing Winter Session of Parliament focuses on the country's pressing problems rather than partisan clashes," Mayawati said, according to a BSP statement issued here. "Parliament must function in the broader interest of people. Both the ruling party and the opposition must demonstrate seriousness to address the challenges facing the nation," she added. The BSP supremo on Saturday addressed a meeting of senior party leaders from Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand in .

Sambhal mosque controversy: Govt and SC must take cognizance, says Mayawati

BSP president Mayawati on Friday appealed to the government and the Supreme Court to take cognizance of the controversy regarding the Jama Masjid in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal district. "The news of the sudden controversy, hearing and then the hasty survey regarding the Shahi Jama Masjid of Sambhal district of UP is in the national discussion and media headlines," the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president said in a post on 'X'. "But the government and the honourable Supreme Court must also take cognizance of spoiling the harmony and atmosphere in this way," the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said. A survey of the Jama Masjid was conducted earlier on Tuesday on the orders of a court in Sambhal district. It is claimed that this mosque has been built by demolishing a temple. Petitioner advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain had said on Tuesday that the court of Civil Judge (Senior Division) directed to constitute an 'Advocate Commission' for the survey of Jama Masjid. The court has said that

Oppn condemns Jhansi hospital fire tragedy, blames UP govt for negligence

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak said that a multi-level investigation will be conducted

BJP, Cong trading allegations, offering freebies to lure voters: Mayawati

BSP supremo Mayawati on Monday said at a time when crores of people are troubled by inflation and unemployment, the BJP and Congress are busy hurling allegations at each other and announcing freebies in the poll campaigns for Maharashtra and Jharkhand elections. Instead of focusing their attention on public issues, these parties are busy in "negative politics" with their false propaganda and promises ahead of the elections, she added. In a post on X, the Bahujan Samaj Party chief said, "The promises made to the people by these two parties are not being fulfilled honestly, because they (promises) are made only to mislead the people and are forgotten after forming the government." "This is the reason why the Congress' governments, especially in Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka, are facing the accusation of breaking promises and various BJP governments, including UP, are seen engaging in 'jugaad politics' to divert attention from the burning issues after forming the government," she ..

Mayawati accuses BJP, SP of being hand in glove with each other for bypolls

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Saturday accused the BJP and Samajwadi Party (SP) of being "hand in glove" in the run-up to the November 13 bypolls to nine Assembly constituencies in Uttar Pradesh in which the BSP is going solo on all seats. Addressing a press conference here, the former UP chief minister also slammed the two parties for their "misleading" slogans -- BJP's 'Batenge toh Katenge' (divided we fall) and SP's 'Judenge toh Jeetenge' (united we win) -- and said these are designed to divert people's attention from the real issues. Comparing the rule of BSP, SP and now the BJP in Uttar Pradesh, Mayawati pitched her regime (2007-2012) as the best in terms of law and order. "BSP se Judenge toh Aage Badhenge, Surakshit Rahenge (people will progress and remain safe in BSP's company)," Mayawati said, as she reiterated her "BJP-SP together" charge to blunt SP's claim of BSP being "BJP's B team". "Ever since the bypolls were announced and the BSP decided to go solo on

Mayawati accuses BJP and Congress of undermining Dalit reservation

Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Tuesday accused the BJP and the Congress of attempting to alter reservation policies for Dalits in states governed by them, claiming these changes threaten the unity and rights of marginalised communities. The four-time former Uttar Pradesh chief minister took to social media to express concern over the "new system" of sub-reservation for Dalits implemented by the BJP government in Haryana and the Congress governments in Telangana and Karnataka. "This hurried implementation of sub-reservation is part of a continued conspiracy to render reservation ineffective and inactive," the BSP chief alleged She claimed that both the BJP and the Congress are alike and dubbed them as "casteist" "The active engagement of casteist parties, which oppose reservation and threaten the unity of millions of oppressed and neglected Dalits, proves that the BJP and Congress are two sides of the same coin. Their actions pose a greater threat to society and the ...

Maharashtra's desire for change will reflect in poll results: Sharad Pawar

NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday said the people of Maharashtra are eager for a political change and expressed confidence that the sentiment will be reflected in the outcome of the upcoming state assembly polls. Addressing a press conference here along with leaders of the other Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) constituents, Pawar claimed that the state administration, which was considered the best in the country, was demoralised under the Mahayuti regime. "We want to make people free from the present government and I am confident they will support us," he said, adding that in the upcoming state elections, the MVA will repeat its Lok Sabha poll performance. The Mahayuti comprises the Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, BJP and Ajit Pawar's NCP. Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray said there is a difference of only 0.6 per cent in the vote share of the Congress and BJP in the recently held Haryana assembly polls, still the BJP got more seats. "Why is the Jammu and Kash

Mayawati opts to stay away from alliance with regional parties, NDA, INDIA

BSP chief Mayawati Friday announced her party will no longer form alliances with regional forces in Uttar Pradesh or any other state, citing unsatisfactory results from previous partnerships, and also continue to maintain distance from the BJP and Congress-led alliances. The decision was taken during a review meeting of the "bitter experience of the Haryana assembly election results and prior Punjab elections", the former four-time Uttar Pradesh chief minister said in a series of posts in Hindi on social media platform X. "The BSP had consistently transferred its votes to alliance partners during elections in Uttar Pradesh and other states, but the inability of these partners to reciprocate had led to disappointing results, which demoralized party workers and hurt the party's movement," she said. She noted that it was important to protect the party cadres from further disappointment and damage to the "movement". "In this context, considering the bitter experience of the Haryana ...

Mayawati blames Haryana Jat voters for BSP's poll debacle, calls for change

Mayawati voiced disappointment over the Haryana election results, attributing the BSP-INLD alliance's setback to the Jat community's lack of support for her party

BJP, Cong, SP obstacles to BSP's pursuit of self-esteem: Mayawati

BJP, Cong, SP obstacles to Bahujan Samaj's pursuit of self-esteem: Mayawati

Mayawati questions UP govt's food safety move, calls it electoral politics

Bahujan Samaj Party Chief Mayawati on Thursday slammed the UP government's directive to display names and addresses of eatery operators, proprietors and managers, saying it was more about electoral politics than food safety. Citing incidents of spitting and mixing of urine in eatables in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday directed that the name and address of operators, proprietors and managers should be mandatorily displayed at all food centres. He also directed that chefs and waiters should wear masks and gloves, besides making installation of CCTV cameras in hotels and restaurants mandatory. The UP government's announcement of making it compulsory to install cameras along with the name and address of the owners and manager in hotels, restaurants, dhabas etc. is similar to the action taken during the Kanwar Yatra, sparking discussions that this is less about food safety and more about diverting public's attention through electoral politics, Mayawati said in a

Cong's reservation policy for Dalits, backwards 'deceptive': Mayawati

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Tuesday dubbed the Congress "anti-reservation", accusing it of having a "duplicitous and deceptive" reservation policy for Dalits and backward classes. In a series of posts on social media platform 'X', the former UP chief minister launched a scathing attack on Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and his party Congress. In her posts, she said, "The SC/ST/OBC reservation policy of the Congress and Rahul Gandhi is not clear, rather duplicitous and deceptive." "In our country, they support reservations for votes and advocate for increasing it beyond 50 per cent, while abroad they talk about abolishing those reservations. People should be alert to their double standards," she further said. Mayawati added, "It is also true that their government at the Centre did not implement the Mandal Commission report regarding OBC reservations. Furthermore, the amendment Bill brought to Parliament to effectively implement the reservat

Mayawati urges Dalit leaders to break ties with Cong ahead of Haryana polls

Ahead of the assembly elections in Haryana, BSP supremo Mayawati on Monday urged Dalit leaders to sever ties with the Congress and other "casteist parties" and follow the path laid down by Dr BR Ambedkar. The comments come amid attempts by the alliance of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) to position itself as a pro-Dalit alternative in Haryana. In a series of posts on X, the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister accused the Congress and other "casteist parties" of using Dalit leaders only in times of trouble and later marginalising them. She said in Hindi, "The political developments in the country so far have proven that the Congress and other casteist parties only remember Dalits during their bad days and appoint them as chief ministers or to other key organisational positions temporarily." "But in their good days, these parties mostly sideline Dalits and replace them with casteist individuals, as is currently being witnessed in Haryana," she ...

Bulldozer not symbol of rule of law; SC fulfilled responsibility: Mayawati

Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and BSP president Mayawati on Wednesday expressed serious concerns over the "rising" trend of using bulldozers for demolitions, saying it does not symbolise a just rule of law. The Bahujan Samaj Party supremo also stressed that the Centre and state governments must pay attention to the implementation of the Constitution and the rule of law. Her remarks came a day after the Supreme Court said there would be no demolition of properties, including of those accused of crime, till October 1 without its permission, while observing that even one instance of illegal demolition was against the "ethos" of the Constitution. "Despite bulldozer demolition not being a symbol of the rule of law, the increasing trend of its use is a matter of concern. However, when the general public does not agree with the bulldozer or any other matter, then the Centre should come forward and make uniform guidelines for the whole country, which is not being done," Mayawati poste

BSP eyes lost space in upcoming polls, gives spotlight to Akash Anand

Following a series of electoral setbacks, the BSP is now looking at the forthcoming Haryana assembly elections and the by-elections in Uttar Pradesh to reclaim its lost political space, and the party's young national coordinator Akash Anand is expected to play a crucial role in it. Akash Anand, the nephew of Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati, has seen a string of ups and down in the past 10 months. Mayawati named him as her political successor in December 2023, later removed him from the post calling him "immature" and subsequently reinstated him after the party's crushing defeat in the Lok Sabha polls. Now, Akash Anand, 29, has been named in the party's list of star campaigners for the Haryana assembly polls released on Friday. In the list, his name features just after Mayawati and his father Anand Kumar. Akash Anand's recent speeches, however, have been more measured as compared to his rallies in the run-up to the Lok Sabha polls, sources said. BSP's UP unit president Vishwana