Lucknow, Feb 5 (IANS) Rocked by successive electoral reverses, four-time Uttar Pradesh chief minister and BSP leader Mayawati is battling a never-before revolt in the party.
Close aides are deserting her and crossing over to rivals, mainly the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Some have been expelled for "indiscipline", a political euphemism for intending party hoppers. In less than two months, two senior leaders - Jugul Kishore, a Rajya Sabha MP, and former state minister Daddu Prasad - have spewed venom on Mayawati.
They accused her of being dictatorial, greedy and egoistic before quitting the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).
Until some months ago, Mayawati's word was the law in the party. It seems it is no more so. While many point out that the discontent was simmering, pundits are surprised at the vocal rebellion against Mayawati.
BSP's founder-member and one-time close aide Jugul Kishore last month accused her of amassing ill-gotten money, taking money from candidates to let them fight elections.
For a long time, Kishore was a close aide of Mayawati and a part of her "kitchen cabinet". He was also seen as one of the BSP's best organizers.
Her former cabinet colleague Daddu Prasad also trained his guns on the party boss, leading to his expulsion.
While Jugul Kishore and Daddu Prasad have rebelled, the former's wife and son have joined the BJP.
A BSP legislator, Har Govind Singh, has also joined the BJP. And so has Brij Lal, a former director general of police. Former MP Ganga Charan Rajput is set to follow.
Kishore says more than 60 legislators would leave the BSP when assembly elections are announced in Uttar Pradesh in 2017.
Legislator Balaprasad Awasthi and former MP Goraknath Pandey rebelled last year. So did Rakesh Dhar Tripathi, Shahid Aklaq and Kanwar Hassan -- all three political lightweights.
Mayawati rose from humble beginnings when she was spotted by BSP's founder leader Kanshi Ram at a Delhi political rally. Asked what she wanted to do in life, she said she desired to become an IAS officer.
Kanshi Ram, apparently seeing some spark in her, retorted that he will ensure that hundreds of IAS officers one day queue up in front of her.
She twice formed a government in Uttar Pradesh with BJP as her ally but never completed her term. Earlier, she had teamed up with the Samajwadi Party, leading to a bitter divorce.
A state BSP leader admitted that Mayawati has the daunting task of preventing further cracks in the party.
The BSP failed to win even one of the 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh in the 2014 Lok Sabha battle.
In the earlier assembly election, its tally slipped to 80 from 200-plus, at the end of its five-year term in Uttar Pradesh.
BSP-backed independents have also lost all by-elections. The BSP's forays in Jharkhand, Haryana and Maharashtra polls came a cropper.
Mayawati's so-called captive Dalit vote bank has shrunk drastically in other states too, including Delhi. Her rallies now attract fewer crowds, in contrast to the times when she would be heard by tens of thousands.
One detractor said that Mayawati could no more be described as a "Dalit ki beti" (A daughter of Dalits). "Instead, she is now daulat (wealth) ki beti."
Sajad Lone to be sworn in as Minister
Jammu, March 1 (IANS) Sajad Gani Lone, former separatist leader and chief of the Peoples Conference, has reached here and will be sworn in as a minister in the PDP-BJP government in Jammu and
Shakib becomes first Bangladeshi to score 4,000 ODI runs
Canberra, Feb 18 (IANS) Shakib Al Hasan Wednesday became the first Bangladesh batsman to score 4,000 runs in One-Day Internationals (ODIs).The left-handed batsman reached the milestone in their
Israel-Hamas War: Elon Musk extends helping hand, X's ad revenue will be donated to hospitals in Israel and Gaza
Thousands of people have lost their lives so far due to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. However, amid the war, industrialist and Ax owner Elon Musk has come forward to help the
Manipur: Supreme Court formed a committee of three former women judges for Manipur, who will submit report regarding relief-rehabilitation
The Supreme Court has constituted a committee of three women High Court judges to monitor the relief, rehabilitation, and compensation of the victims of violence in Manipur. This committee will assess
Taliban seals Pakistan border, what will be the effect on trade relations with India?
After the Taliban's capture of Kabul, the most feared trade with India was being raised. Now it seems to be happening in reality. India has said that the Taliban has stopped cross-border trade with
'India can achieve Highest Emission Reduction in Asia'
Thimphu (Bhutan), Feb 8 (IANS) India can achieve the highest reduction in emission levels in Asia by 2050 by adopting agricultural practices that prevent the release of methane and nitrogen oxides
India does not recognize the international court whose decision Pakistan was boasting about; what is the whole matter?
Pakistan has welcomed the decision of the International Court of Arbitration, Permanent Court of Arbitration. It has interpreted the design criteria for new run-of-river hydropower projects to be
Asad Encounter: Ashraf met Ashraf in Bareilly jail before Umesh Pal's murder, Asad and Ghulam were killed in the encounter
Asad, the prize son of mafia Atiq Ahmed, who was killed in the encounter, and shooter Ghulam met Ashraf in Bareilly District Jail. When the investigation took place after the murder of advocate
Being crorepati not benchmark for candidate's financial worth: ADR
Panaji, Feb 10 (IANS) Being a crorepati was not a good benchmark to judge the financial worth of an electoral candidate in this day and age, because most candidates who own a flat in metropolitan
Priyanka Chopra: It was not easy for Priyanka to earn a name in Hollywood, she had to face these challenges
Priyanka Chopra is a veteran actress in Hindi cinema. He has worked in many best films in Bollywood. Priyanka has waved her success from Bollywood to Hollywood. Leaving a small district of UP, first
