Now, 2 sitting BSP MLAs accuse Maya of ‘selling’ tickets
The ‘money for ticket’ row hit the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) once again on Wednesday when two of its sitting MLAs Harvinder Kumar Sahani alias Romi Sahani and Brijesh Kumar Verma accused party chief Mayawati of selling assembly tickets.
Later in the day, the party cracked the whip on the duo and suspended them with immediate effect. “They have been suspended and directed not to take part in any party programme,” state BSP chief Ram Achal Rajbhar said in a press release.
Addressing a press conference, Sahani and Verma said, “Candidates are forced to cough up ` 2 to `10 crore for a ticket. Those who fail to give the money demanded by the party chief have been denied ticket and their political career has been ruined. Majority of the BSP MLAs are living in terror and some of them have even fallen ill.”
Earlier senior BSP leaders, including Swami Prasad Maurya, RK Chaudhary and Daddu Prasad, had made similar accusation against Mayawati.
Sahani, who represents Paliya assembly seat in Lakhimpur Kheri district, and Verma, who was elected from Mallawan assembly seat in Hardoi district, were earlier expelled from the BSP on charges of indiscipline on June 20. But after senior leader Swami Prasad Maurya revolted, Mayawati re-inducted the duo on July 6.
Then why again are they up in arms? “Mayawati demanded Rs 5 crore from me and Rs 4 crore from Verma for the ticket. I expressed my inability and told her that we are missionary workers. I have spent my salary on the marriage of the girls coming from poor families. The MLA area development fund had been utilized on the electrification of 81 villages in my constituency”, they said.
“National general secretary of BSP Naseemuddin Siddiqui told us that several people are in queue for ticket, ready to pay a much higher amount.
When we refused to oblige, Siddiqui accused that I was regularly meeting rebel BSP leader Jugul Kishore.
We were expelled from the party on the charge of indiscipline on June 20 but later on July 6 we were re-inducted in the party.
But the demand for money for ticket stayed,” they said.
Accusing Mayawati of dumping the ideology of Bhimrao Ambedkar and Kanshi Ram, the duo alleged that Mayawati had made big money by selling party tickets. “
There is huge disenchantment among the party workers and several of them are planning to leave the party.
If she wished to check rebellion, she should then spend the money collected through ticket sale on education and medical care of the poor people,” Sahani said.
The duo condemned the comment made by expelled BJP leader Dayashankar Singh against Mayawati but also castigated the party leaders for making derogatory comment on mother, wife and daughter of Singh.
Reacting over their allegation, BSP leader Brajesh Pathak said they were making baseless charge as the party had denied assembly ticket to them.