BSP-SP understanding to continue: Mayawati

BSP chief Mayawati on Saturday said that the Rajya Sabha election result will have no impact on her party's association with the Samajwadi Party and the two will work with even more force to defeat BJP in the 2019 general elections. A day after her party candidate lost to the BJP in an intense contest in Uttar Pradesh despite backing from SP, the BSP supremo said the ruling party, which secured the win through "undemocratic" and "unconstitutional" means, is expecting that she will break off ties with the SP and "it (BJP) will have a field day in 2019", but she will not let it happen.

Accusing the BJP of indulging in malpractice in the election, she said that the ruling party had "conspired" to defeat her candidate to create a rift between BSP and SP. "I will not let that happen at any cost. They were up all night eating laddoos and thinking that Mayawati will get angry and break off and that they will have a field day in 2019...," Mayawati told reporters here.

'The Rajya Sabha election result will have no impact on the understanding between the BSP and SP and their conspiracy will cost them heavily as the workers of BSP and SP will now work with even more force to stop them from coming to power in 2019," she said.

Her remarks came after Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav cancelled the victory celebration for his party nominee Jaya Bachchan to be held in the state capital as a sign of solidarity with the BSP whose lone candidate backed by the SP lost in the Rajya Sabha polls. 'There will not be an iota of difference in the close understanding between the BSP and SP," Mayawati said, making it clear that BSP is keen to consolidate its association with the SP which is seen as a major reason for the BJP's recent defeat in two prestigious Lok Sabha seats of Gorakhpur and Phulpur seats. After it wrested the two seats with the BSP's backing, the SP had reciprocated by promising to ensure victory of BSP candidate Bhimrao Ambedkar. However, the BSP lost out in a cliff-hanger on Friday. The former chief minister, however, said that had she been in Akhilesh's place she would have ensured the victory of the candidate of the other party even if it meant making sacrifices so that the BJP could not dare make attempt to end their closeness. '...He erred a little in this since he is a little inexperienced but he will soon learn to give a befitting reply," she said and indicated that she was ready to put behind the bitter past with the SP. Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party said that it had planned a function at the party headquarters to celebrate the victory of its candidate Jaya Bachchan, but since BSP candidate, Bhimrao Ambedkar (BSP) lost, party president Akhilesh Yadav has cancelled it. After the BJP won nine out of 10 Rajya Sabha seats seats in the state, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had claimed that the election had exposed the "opportunistic face of SP". "It can take votes but not give votes in return", he said referring to SP's victory in the recent Lok Sabha bypolls in Gorakhpur and Phulpur. Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma termed the alliance of the SP and the BSP as "lathabandhan" (a tie-up to intimidate people). "In fact, the alliance is not based on any principle except on 'Modi hatao, BJP hatao' (Remove Modi and BJP)," he said.