Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president Mayawati declared her nephew Akash Anand as her successor again and reinstated him as the party’s national coordinator on Sunday, reversing her previous decision.
After declaring Mr. Anand as her political heir in December 2023, the BSP chief in the middle of the poll campaigning on May 7 had removed him as the party’s national coordinator. She said he needed to “reach maturity” before assuming such key roles. The move came after Mr. Anand was booked in a case of violation of the Model Code of Conduct for allegedly using “objectionable” language in an election rally in Sitapur.
Ms. Mayawati said the BSP faced a setback in the Lok Sabha poll as the INDIA bloc parties misled voters with their propaganda on protecting the Constitution and other issues. She said the poor and weaker sections of society especially get misled during elections and end up harming the prospects of their “only well-wisher” — the BSP. They help those parties that exploit them and grab power, she added. “This is not fair. They will have to give up their habit of getting misled again and again,” the BSP chief said.
“The Congress used all kinds of tactics to prevent Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar from entering the Constituent Assembly. How can it talk about protecting the Constitution made by Ambedkar?”
Ms. Mayawati said when the Congress did not listen to Ambedkar on reservation and other key issues, he resigned as the Law Minister of the then Congress government. He then advised the Bahujan community to unite and form its own political party to take the master key of political power at the Centre and in the States in its hands, so that it can take full advantage of the legal rights given to it by the Constitution. She also instructed BSP office-bearers to strengthen the party at every level in view of the upcoming polls in some States.