‘Muslims need to think…’: Mayawati on Mainpuri, Rampur bypoll results

Earlier this year, BSP chief Mayawati had blamed party's dismal show in Uttar Pradesh legislative assembly on shift of the Muslim vote to the rival Samajwadi Party (SP).

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati on Sunday wondered whether Samajwadi Party's win in the Mainpuri Lok Sabha bypoll and defeat in the Rampur assembly bypoll was a result of “internal collusion" with Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Mayawati said the Muslim community needs to think a lot so they can be “saved from being cheated” in the upcoming elections.

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati.(PTI)

In the recently held bypoll in Mainpuri, SP's Dimple Yadav defeated her nearest rival BJP’s Raghuraj Singh Shakya by a margin of 2.88 lakh votes. The by-election was necessitated due to the death of Samajwadi Party founder-leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, who was also Dimple Yadav’s father-in-law.

The BJP, however, breached Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan's stronghold Rampur Sadar assembly seat for the first time. BJP's Akash Saxena defeated Azam's nominee Asim Raza in a close battle by a margin of over 34,000 votes.

“SP won in UP's Mainpuri Lok Sabha by-election, but its defeat for the first time in the Rampur assembly by-election due to planned low voting in Mr. Azam Khan's special seat has prompted a lot of discussion whether it is the result of internal collusion between SP and BJP?” Mayawati said in a tweet in Hindi.

“Especially the Muslim society needs to think and understand a lot about this so that it can be saved from being cheated in the upcoming elections. There is a lot of doubt about the defeat of BJP in the Khatauli assembly seat, this is also a matter to think about,” she added.

The Rashtriya Lok Dal, an ally of the SP, won the Khatauli bypoll with its candidate Madan Bhaiya defeating BJP's Rajkumari Saini by 22,000 votes.

Mayawati's party has a single seat in the Uttar Pradesh legislative assembly after a major drubbing in the 2022 state elections. The BSP had fielded 88 Muslim candidates in the UP assembly elections but not a single candidate won.