Maya to begin campaigning from Feb 2

Wait over: Former UP chief minister is going to kick-start the BSP’s election campaign from Agra

BSP president has not done aggressive campaigning through big rallies or road shows till now

Lucknow: The 2022 elections of UP are being considered as a make-or-break electoral battle for the BSP. Mayawati’s absence on the ground in this crucial electoral contest was paving the way for many speculations.

Now former UP chief minister Mayawati is going to kickstart the BSP’s election campaign from Agra on February 2. It is noteworthy that Mayawati, who had been the chief minister of UP four times, has been considered a leader who has been a great crowd-puller, much more than other state leaders in UP.

Her rallies were thronged by thousands of her supporters in the past. But this time she did not participate in any public campaign for the ongoing assembly polls.

Whereas the top leaders of BJP, SP and Congress had organised dozens of rallies and road shows in UP before the ban was imposed by the Election Commission. Not only her supporters but also political experts were surprised by this silence of Mayawati.

Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also expressed surprise over this and said that Mayawati was not campaigning due to pressure from BJP.

BJP leader and Union Home minister Amit Shah, while taking a jibe at a public meeting in Moradabad, said that Mayawati has confined herself to the house because it is very cold outside. The BSP chief, while countering the criticism through an emotional card, argued that If she imitates her opponents, her supporters will not be able to bear the financial burden.

She emphasized that other parties receive a lot of money from governments as well as industrialists but BSP is a party of the “poor and the oppressed”.

However, A senior BSP leader said on the condition of anonymity that even though Mayawati had been absent from the ground, there was constant activism within the organisation, based on the strength of highly disciplined and dedicated workers, BSP has devised an effective formula of caste equations.

In such a situation, those who underestimate us will be proved wrong and BSP will bring surprising results, he added.