Announcing her party’s decision to contest all 10 seats in the assembly by-elections in Uttar Pradesh, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) President Mayawati slammed the Congress for crediting Mahatma Gandhi and Jawahar Lal Nehru for the SC/ST reservation in the country ignoring the efforts of Dr B R Ambedkar.

Earlier, the BSP, which used to shy away from contesting bypolls, has changed its electoral strategy after its recent debacle, hence the decision to fight the assembly by-elections to be held on 10 seats of the state with full strength.

In a meeting of senior officials and district heads at the party’s state office here on Sunday, the BSP chief said the date for the by-election has not been officially announced, but the excitement about it is increasing by the day. “People’s interest in the by-elections has increased especially since BJP and its government have made it a prestige issue. The BSP will contest the by-elections strongly by fielding its candidates on all the seats,” she told the party leaders.

She said there was anger among the people in the entire country, including UP, against the government’s failure to contain poverty, unemployment, inflation and backwardness, etc. “To divert people’s attention from these issues, a conspiracy is going on to hatched to create a hysteria about caste and religion along with destructive bulldozer politics,” she alleged.

However Mayawati was peeved at the statement of the Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge that the credit for SC-ST reservation should go to Mahatma Gandhi and former PM Jawaharlal Nehru. She vehemently claimed, “There is no truth in this at all. The full credit for reservation goes to Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar only. Congress people conspired to stop him from going to the Constituent Assembly and also tried to defeat him in the elections.They also forced him to resign from the post of Law Minister.”

The BSP president said the new law on religious conversion and the conspiracy to sub-categorize SC-ST reservation is an attempt to divide people.

“The government is refusing to conduct caste census. There is forceful government interference in mosque-madrasa operation and Waqf protection, etc. The UP government took a hasty decision regarding Nazul’s land, due to which an atmosphere of chaos was created in the entire state. Even in the matter of giving government land on lease, an attitude of malice and favoritism is being adopted, which is being opposed within the BJP itself. The public no longer has faith in the intentions and policies of the government,” she alleged.

Mayawati further said, “At the same time, the government’s strictness regarding law and order is more on paper. Its effect is least visible on the people of BJP. People’s lives are disrupted due to floods in the state, the government is making a lot of fake statements about providing help to them”.

During the meeting, the BSP supremo took the progress report from the leaders on the guidelines given in the last meeting to increase the party’s support base.

She also examined the ground preparations for better performance of the party in the upcoming by-elections.