Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Wednesday accused the Samajwadi Party of spreading an “illusion” that some of its MLAs were breaking away to join the SP, noting that they had already been suspended by her.
She said the SP was an expert in “narrow-minded politics” of casteism, manipulations and malice.
Ms. Mayawati’s strong words came a day after around half-a-dozen suspended BSP MLAs met SP president Akhilesh Yadav amid talks of them joining the party ahead of the 2022 Assembly poll.
One of the rebel MLAs, Aslam Raini, however, said they also had the option open of forming their own party if they could muster 12 MLAs. So far, 11 MLAs from the BSP have been suspended in the recent past.
Ms. Mayawati said the MLAs had been already suspended in the past over allegations of colluding with the SP and an industrialist in order to defeat a Dalit candidate fielded by the BSP in the Rajya Sabha polls.
Ms. Mayawati said that if the SP was honest towards these MLAs, it would not keep them hanging. The SP knew that if it took in these BSP MLAs, there would be a rebellion in the SP, whose MLAs were restless to join the BSP, she added.
She said the SP’s moves, character and face had always been anti-Dalit.
The BSP had won 19 seats in 2017. However, while on paper it has 16 MLAs, its actual strength is down to just seven due to rebellions and the recent expulsion of senior legislators Lalji Verma and Ram Achal Rajbhar.
