Mayawati changes strategy for 2019 Lok Sabha polls

LUCKNOW: Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati has decided to promote the youth and missionary workers in the party organization to be battle-ready for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Dalits form the core base of the party and to expand the support base before the crucial election, she has also started working on ‘sarva- samaj’ (all communities) formula.

Besides, she has started reviewing preparation also for the Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh assembly elections that are likely to be held at the end of the year. She held a series of meetings in this regard in the party’s state unit office on Saturday.

Aware that consecutive defeats in the assembly and Lok Sabha elections, rebellion of senior leaders, absence of young faces in the organization, rise of Bhim Army led by Chandrashekhar in West UP and sidelining of the missionary workers have demoralized the party workers, the BSP chief has decided to revamp the organization right from the grass root level.

She told the senior party leaders that booth committees will be reorganized before the elections. besides Dalits, members of backward, upper caste and Muslim communities will be given adequate representation in the committees. Missionary workers, who were promoting the ideology of the party, would be adjusted in the organization and priority be given to them in distribution of ticket, she said.

Party leaders were also directed to organize cadre camps across the state to collect feedback about the mood of the people and rope in more members into the BSP. Senior party leaders were directed to attend the cadre camps and give message to the workers active at the grass root level.

Party leaders would raise the problem faced by the people due to demonetization, GST, unemployment, agriculture crisis, harassment of the minority communities, law and order, withdrawal of the cases against politicians, Mayawati said.

To motivate the leaders, she said the BSP continued struggle for the deprived section during the Congress rule and grabbed power. Under the BJP rule, the party would continue to fight back and try to form government in UP. The BSP would also play major role in the formation of the government in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh as well, she said.

She cautioned the party leaders and workers and said they should be watchful as the ruling party might “tamper with the EVMs again”.

She said on the request of the BSP the Supreme Court had ordered for the polling by voter verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) in the coming Lok Sabha and assembly elections.

Party leaders were eager to know if the BSP will opt for prepoll alliance in the 2019 Lok Sabha and assembly elections in three states but Mayawati avoided the issue.

A senior party leader said Mayawati told them that a decision on pre-poll alliance will be taken at the appropriate moment after evaluating the offer of the like minded parties. Another BSP leader said earlier she rejected alliance offer and preferred to contest the election on the party’s own strength but the pre-poll alliance with the Janta Dal (S) in Karnataka indicated change in the strategy.

It might pave the way for the future alliances as well, he said.

MAYA TOLD THE SENIOR PARTY LEADERS THAT BOOTH COMMITTEES WILL BE REORGANIZED BEFORE THE ELECTIONS.