Mayawati kicks off 2022 UP poll campaign; promises 'inquiry' into wrongs against Brahmins

Kicking off BSP's Uttar Pradesh poll campaign, party Supremo Mayawati addressed the  'Prabudh Sammelan' in Lucknow on Tuesday - her first public rally since 2020 Delhi polls. Wooing the Brahmin community, Mayawati assured that once a BSP govt with full majority is elected, the community will be taken care of. Promising a 'high-level inquiry' into the wrongs done against the Brahmin community, Mayawati urged the community to vote for her just like in 2007.  Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Gujarat, Manipur, Goa and Himachal Pradesh is set to go to polls in 2022.

Wooing the Brahmins, she said, "People of Brahmin community have started saying that the government of BSP has been better than of all other parties. With the formation of the BSP govt, complete care will be taken of the Brahmin community along with other communities. Just like 2007, we have to make a BSP govt with a full majority this time too. Whatever wrong was done with the Brahmin society, a high-level inquiry will be conducted. Action will be taken against the guilty officers."

Mayawati kicks off UP poll campaign  

Lashing out at the BJP over the farmers' protests, she added, "For votes, BJP promised to increase the income of farmers instead they brought 3 black farm laws. Recently, the Haryana govt gave the order to break the heads of protestors, and a farmer died because of that. BJP lied, but we did what we had said about increasing the income of farmers. Three laws of the centre will not be allowed to be implemented in the state". She has also promised to focus only on the development of Uttar Pradesh & not on building parks & 'smaraks' in the state, if voted into power.

BSP lashes out 'BJP don't want Ram Mandir'

Last month, the BSP – which counts on Dalit votes – began a series of “prabuddha varg sammelans” (intellectuals’ meetings) to woo Brahmins ahead of next year assembly polls. The Samajwadi Party is also set to launch a similar exercise. On July 23, BSP MP Satish Chandra Mishra kicked off the first event in Bareilly stating both Dalits and Brahmins are living in fear in the state due to BJP.

Addressing the event, he claimed, "Brahman community constitute 13 per cent of the state population but are still marginalised because Brahmins are not united", stressing that the real power will come only when Brahmins and 23 per cent Dalits in the state unite. Attacking the BJP, Mishra asked the ruling party to give an account of the donations collected by it in the name of the Ram temple in the past three decades. The BSP leader alleged that the BJP does not want to built the temple and once his party’s government comes to power, they will "force" them to build it. Mayawati's Brahmin outreach was considered as one of the key factors for her win in the 2007 UP assembly elections.