Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad accuses Mayawati of weakening  Dalit movement

Critical of Mayawati’s decision to call off her party’s alliance with the SP, Chandrashekhar said her flip-flop move is against the interest of Dalits.
Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad (Photo | PTI)
Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad (Photo | PTI)

LUCKNOW: The self-proclaimed dalit leader and Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad, who believably enjoys a huge following among the dalit youths across western UP, has levelled serious charges against BSP chief Mayawati by accusing her of weakening the Bahujan movement launched by party’s founder-president Kanshi Ram in the country.

Critical of Mayawati’s decision to call off her party’s alliance with the Samajwadi Party, Chandrashekhar, while interacting with media persons in Amroha, said her flip-flop move would not only weaken the Bahujan movement in the country but it was also against the interest of Dalits. “Mayawatiji’s decision to part ways with the SP breaking the alliance will impact the fight for Dalits’ rights,” he said adding that in the given circumstances, his Bhim Army would soon draw a plan for future as ‘Bahujans’ were in need of strong alternative leadership.

Notably, BSP chief Maywati has always been cagey about the presence and activities of Bhim Army chief in UP’s political arena. She has always been claiming that Chandrashekhar carries out all his activities with tacit saffron support.

She had even deputed her foot soldiers during the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections to spearhead a ‘pol kholo’ (expose) campaign against Chandrashekhar to make people aware of those who were backing his organisation.

In fact, Mayawati considers Chandrashekhar as a political threat to her since both have their clout among Dalits concentrated in western UP. On the contrary, very often Azad has sworn his open support to Mayawati on several occasions. During the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, he had exhorted his supporters to back Mayawati as Prime Ministerial candidate but the BSP chief has been rejecting his gestures accusing him of misguiding the dalit youth.

After facing consistent rebuff from the BSP chief, Chandrashekhar seems to have changed his mind and stand toward the BSP. In Amroha, he discussed the dilemma of dalits. “Initially, Mayawati’s decision to strike an alliance with the SP had disappointed the BSP cadre. When somehow they accepted the party decision and started working in tandem with SP, Mayawati has broken the alliance on her whims leaving them confused. This shows that BSP is losing ground in UP,” said the Bhim Army chief.

Claiming that Mayawati had little regard for the movement started by Kanshi Ram, Chandrashekhar Azad said her decision to appoint her brother and nephew on prime positions in the party did not go down well with the cadre and the Dalit voter which was already drifting away from the BSP. “Kanshiramji was dead against dynastic politics. His opinion was strikingly different from his successor. He believed in keeping the ‘prince’ grounded instead of making him the king. He always wanted the dalits to reach the peak of success in every field,” said Azad. He added that Mayawati’s stand had meddled with the basic ethos with which the BSP had come into being.

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