"Not Difficult But Impossible For Samajwadi Party To Defeat BJP": Mayawati

Ahead of the Uttar Pradesh urban local body polls, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Sunday launched a scathing attack on the Samajwadi Party and asked her party workers to remain cautious about the propaganda that its support among Dalits was weakening.

Having been deceived repeatedly, people have now realised that it is "not difficult but impossible" for the SP to defeat the BJP, she charged. "To defeat the BJP, BSP is necessary," she asserted.

At a special meeting of party office-bearers and district unit chiefs, Mayawati accused rival political parties of running a propaganda to weaken the BSP.

It was decided in the meeting that the BSP will go it alone in the urban local body polls, likely to be held soon.

In a statement issued here, she said, "Rival political parties hatch conspiracies to weaken the BSP in the state, misguide the Dalits and also try to isolate them from the party's movement. And through the media, news about cracks in the Dalit vote banks are publicised. There is not an iota of truth in these." The Dalit community should remain cautious about such propaganda and tricks and also make others aware about these, she said.

Sharpening her attack on the Samajwadi Party, the BSP chief said, "SP's dirty politics of deceit and manipulation is not going to work. Dalits and Most Backward Classes are already highly cautious about the SP. And, now the Muslim community is also not going to fall prey to their (SP) trickery and bluff. After repeatedly being deceived, they have understood that defeating the BJP using the SP is not difficult but impossible. Hence, to defeat the BJP, BSP is necessary." She also trained her gun on the ruling BJP. The BJP's claims of development are getting exposed, she said.

"Most of the cities are devoid of any facilities. But they are called smart cities in statements and announcements. Owing to price rise, poverty and unemployment, the condition of villages is very bad," she said.

"...under this government, if there has been any development, it has been of a handful of people in power, who are above the law, and for them, the discipline of rule of law does not hold any meaning, and this is known to all. However, it is important to change this sorry state of affairs, otherwise crores of people will suffer under price rise, poverty, unemployment and anarchy," she said.

"The BJP and its government are in the dock over the reservation for OBC in the urban local bodies elections, unemployment, farming problems...their condition is very dicey. The Samajwadi Party is completely on the back foot over its uncertain policies and deceitful approach as far as the interests of Dalits, Most Backward Classes and Muslim community are concerned," she alleged.

She charged that the SP was now trying to politically use the name of BSP founder Kanshi Ram even though the party has a long history of being ungrateful to him as well as B R Ambedkar.

She also referred to the 1995 Lucknow State Guest House incident when SP workers attacked a meeting of her party and how the alliance between the two parties ended then.

"If the SP had run the alliance government as per the missionary thought process of Kanshi Ram, then there would never have been any cracks in the alliance, and it would have ruled the country," she said.

She said, "BSP is the only ray of hope to improve the life of crores of people who are facing many problems.... In order to meet the expectations of the people, the party workers should at the earliest get ready for the urban local bodies election so that some relief could be given to them." Meanwhile, BSP MLA Uma Shankar Singh told reporters, "It was decided in the meeting that the BSP will contest the urban local body elections on its own." He added that no decision was taken on Shaista Parveen, the wife of jailed gangster-politician Atiq Ahmad. "If she is convicted, the BSP will take action against her, and Behen-ji (Mayawati) has said this. But till the time she is not convicted, we should not consider an innocent person as guilty. We will request the police to nab the culprits," Singh said.

Shaista Parveen is being seen as a possible mayoral candidate for the BSP in Prayagraj.

On March 13, Singh in Ballia had said, "Shaista Parveen is all set to become the mayor of Prayagraj and the BJP is going to lose the seat."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)