Bahujan Samaj Party president Mayawati on Thursday, 29 October, expelled seven MLAs, blamed the Samajwadi Party (SP) for being anti-Dalit and said that her party will ‘even vote for BJP’ to defeat Akhilesh Yadav.
"We have decided that to defeat SP candidate in future MLC (Member of Legislative Council) elections in UP, we will devote all our energies and even if we have to give our vote to a BJP candidate or any other party candidate, we will do it. Any party candidate who will be dominant over Samajwadi's second candidate will get all BSP MLAs' vote for sure," Mayawati told news agency ANI.
She added that it was a “mistake” to withdraw her 1995 case against the SP for the sake of their alliance in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
UP Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, hinting at Mayawati's ‘veiled support’ for the BJP, commented on the video of her statement: "Now, is there anything more to be said.”
Seven Legislators Expelled
She further said that the seven legislators who had betrayed the party were being expelled from the party. The expelled legislators are Aslam Chaudhary, Aslam Raini, Mujtaba Siddiqui, Hakam Lal Bind, Govind Jatav, Sushma Jatav and Vandana Singh.
She said that as soon as these MLAs violate the anti-defection laws, disqualification petitions would be moved against them.
‘Will Avenge the Wrong Done to BSP’
Mayawati also announced that she would avenge the wrong done to her party in the upcoming elections of the legislative council.
“We will ensure the defeat of the SP candidate in the council polls. I want to tell Akhilesh that they had split our party in 2003 too and then they were voted out of power in 2007 by the people,” she said and added that Akhilesh would bite dust in the next Assembly elections.
Talking about the drama during the Rajya Sabha elections, she said that Mishra had spoken to SP MP Professor Ram Gopal Yadav and asked if their party would field another candidate but he said that the party would not field the second candidate.
"It was after this that we decided to put up our own candidate so that our members are not open to bargain by other candidates. But SP fielded an industrialist at the last minute, betraying," she said.
(With inputs from ANI, IANS)
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