Ahead of assembly poll, Maya woos Brahmins

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Wooing Brahmins ahead of the Assembly election in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Mayawati on Sunday supported reservation for the poor and unemployed among upper castes.

Despite upper castes remaining at the helm for several years, most Brahmins, barring a few, had remained backward, economically and in other areas, and faced problems of poverty and unemployment, she told a 'Brahmin Bhaichara Sammelan' here.

"This is the main reason why poor and unemployed people among the upper castes have been demanding reservation on economic basis in the sphere of education and government jobs.

"The BSP fully supports this," Mayawati said adding she had written letters to the Prime Minister several times in this regard.

The Sammelan was organised by the BSP as a show of strength for the community, which had played an important role in party's success in the 2007 assembly election.

An idol of Elephant God Ganesh was displayed prominently on the stage. Elephant is the symbol of the BSP.

The Chief Minister said she had given due representation to Brahmins in her government and gave them important responsibilities. She also took the opportunity to remove misconceptions among the Brahmins that only a few of them and their close relatives had benefited during her rule.

Mayawati said the relatives of senior leaders like Satish Chandra Misra, Ramvir Upadhaya and others were given important posts for their dedication to the party and as per ‘our strategy in the interest of the BSP and its government’.

She warned Brahmins against what she said attempts of opposition parties to weaken the ruling BSP by offering them allurements and false promises before the election. "With election round the corner, opposition parties may make efforts to woo Brahmins with allurements to wean them away from the BSP to serve their political interests.

"They can also propagate that I being a Dalit Chief Minister have given more importance to my own caste which is totally false and far from truth," Mayawati said.

She said she had come to know from certain sources that the Opposition, especially the Congress and the BJP had planned to install Digvijay Singh and Rajnath Singh respectively as Chief Ministers in the event of these parties forming the government in the state. Mayawati said she apprehended after her making their plan public, these two parties might project some Brahmin as Chief Minister.

"If Brahmins get misguided by such designs they will not achieve much as feudal powers will once again exploit innocent people," she warned.

The Brahmin face of the party, Satish Chandra Misra, described Mayawati as ‘kanoon aur nyay ki devi’ (the Goddess of Law and Justice) and promised unflinching support of Brahmins to her.

Mayawati said Brahmins and upper castes had embraced the BSP ideology before the last Vidhan Sabha election as they were neglected by the previous governments.