Mayawati confirms break-up with SP, terms it temporary; BSP to contest by-polls alone

Lucknow: BSP chief Mayawati on Tuesday said that the alliance with Samajwadi Party will continue but her party will contest upcoming assembly by-polls in the state alone.

She also said that if the situation remains conducive in future, the alliance with Samajwadi Party can be forged again.

“It is not a permanent break. If we will feel SP Chief is able to succeed in his political work, we will work again together. But if this does not happen, it will be good for us to work separately. So we have decided to fight the by-elections alone”, she said.

She asked the Samajwadi Party to bring about improvement in its cadre.

She said that the Yadav voters had not supported the alliance. “If Yadavs had voted in full measure for the alliance, senior SP leaders like Dimple Yadav, Dharmendra Yadav and Akshay Yadav would not have lost from Yadav-dominated seats. This is a matter for concern for the Samajwadi Party,” she said.

The BSP president clarified that her party has not benefitted with the base vote of Samajwadi Party.

“However, we cannot ignore political compulsions and we will contest the Assembly by-elections. However, this is not the end of the road. If the Samajwadi Party inculcates a missionary zeal in its workers and improves its performance, we will see,” she added.

Mayawati spoke about her relations with Akhilesh Yadav and his family and said they gave her utmost respect. “Our relationship will not end though politics is another aspect,” she stated.

Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav, on the other hand, did not comment on Mayawati’s statement but said in Azamgarh on Tuesday that the Samajwadi Party would form its own government in Uttar Pradesh in 2022 when Assembly elections are to be held.

This is being seen as an indication of the SP also going alone in the Assembly polls.

Updated on: June 4, 2019 at 11:50 IST

By EP Web Desk

(With Inputs from IANS)