Maya ‘ready for’ an anti-BJP front
Having faced a humiliating defeat in the 2017 UP polls, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Friday said she was willing to be part of a larger antiBJP front.
“To keep democracy alive, I am ready to be part of an anti-BJP front. We have to cut poison with poison. Due to tampering of EVMs, the voters won’t be able to elect their favourite leaders. The anti-BJP front is necessary to make sure that popular candidates who have mass support win elections,” she said amid applause from party workers.
Mayawati also announced that her brother Anand Kumar would be the vice-president of the party.
“He resides in Delhi and will handle the party work. As national vice-president, he will be empowered to dispose of the party documents and represent the party in the meetings held by Election Commission,” she said.
Mayawati made the announcement while addressing the cadre during the Ambedkar birth anniversary function at Lucknow’s Ambedkar Memorial.
Her announcement assumes significance as it could pave way for the formation of a larger front to stop the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections when Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeks a second term.
During the run-up to UP polls, Mayawati had consistently rejected suggestions of being a part of a larger anti-BJP front on the lines of the ‘Mahagathbandhan’ or Grand alliance in Bihar where BJP got defeated.