Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati knows what it would take for her to take on the likes of Akhilesh Yadav — by pressing into whatever it would mean for her Dalit-Bahujan politics. Though she may yearn for the BJP by sounding defeatist, the point is her party has been fighting for survival poorly in the electoral table, with many of their ranks and cadres either preferring the SP or BJP.
In my opinion, she has remained short-sighted in reviving and resurrecting the ranks of a movement that was about addressing the question of rights, equality, dignity and honour as, though they were some hollow and empty slogans that can’t be materialised.
What about the legacy of Ambedkar and Kanshiram, who gave rise to the Bahujan aandolan? Shouldn’t their leadership articulate these values instead of finding faults with Akhilesh Yadav and Priyanka Gandhi? Those countering these values should feel ashamed. Such forces are hell-bent upon destroying the beauty of differences of ideas, values, ethics and opinions among people and is totally unbecoming of our constitutional character and democratic dissent.