Lucknow: Ahead of the Haryana assembly elections, BSP chief Mayawati urged Dalit leaders on Monday to break away from the Congress and other “casteist parties” and follow the path of Dr BR Ambedkar.
These remarks come as the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) alliance aims to establish itself as a pro-Dalit alternative in the state.
In a series of posts on X, the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister accused the Congress and similar parties of exploiting Dalit leaders during difficult times and later sidelining them.
She stated in Hindi that parties like the Congress only remember Dalits during crises, temporarily appointing them to key positions, but later replace them with casteist individuals, as seen in Haryana now.
Mayawati urged Dalit leaders to be inspired by Ambedkar’s legacy and distance themselves from such parties, asking them to keep their communities away from them as well.
She invoked Ambedkar’s resignation from the central government for the dignity of weaker sections and compared it to her own resignation from the Rajya Sabha in 2017, protesting violence against Dalits in Saharanpur.
Additionally, she criticised the Congress for historically opposing reservations for Dalits and backward communities, citing Rahul Gandhi’s past statements abroad about potentially abolishing the reservation system.
The Haryana assembly elections will take place on October 5, with results announced on October 8.