BSP to go solo as Mayawati draws battlelines for UP

Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Thursday formally set the tone for the next Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, declaring that the BSP will contest on its own and ruling out alliances, which she said have consistently weakened the party’s political base.

Addressing reporters on her birthday, Mayawati made a direct outreach to upper castes, particularly Brahmins, asserting that they need dignity, respect and real political participation, not what she described as “bati chokha politics” and tokenistic gestures.

The BSP supremo alleged that successive governments had merely rebranded welfare schemes initiated during BSP rule and taken credit for them. She accused rival parties of running misinformation campaigns and conspiracies to erode the BSP’s social coalition, but asserted that the party was preparing to deliver a “befitting reply” and return to power in Uttar Pradesh for the fifth time.

Stepping up her attack on both the BJP and the Congress, Mayawati said caste-based parties were deploying different strategies to fracture the BSP’s support base. Referring to recent political churn, she claimed that even MLAs from the BJP and Congress were unhappy over neglect within their own parties, which, she said, reflected deepening internal discontent.

Reiterating the BSP’s traditional outreach to upper castes, Mayawati said her governments had consistently given representation to Brahmins and other communities. “Brahmins do not want tokenism. They want respect and real participation,” she said, adding that a future BSP government would safeguard the interests of Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas along with all other sections. She asserted that the BSP remained the only party that had respected all castes and religions.

Mayawati also invoked the legacy of BSP founder Kanshi Ram, alleging that past governments had discriminated against the movement he built. She said no national mourning was declared after his death, which she described as symbolic of the neglect faced by Dalits and other marginalised sections. She further alleged that injustice was being done to several communities, including Muslims, under the present political system.