Chandrashekhar–Mayawati rivalry to play out in UP panchayat polls

Lucknow: The rivalry between Azad Samaj Party founder and firebrand Dalit leader Chandrashekhar alias Ravan and BSP supremo Mayawati is likely to play out in the upcoming panchayat polls in Uttar Pradesh, with both vying for Dalit votes.

Mayawati on Monday termed Chandrashekhar a ‘barsati medhak’ (seasonal leader), and claimed that the BSP was the only party which could take up the issues of Dalits in the country.

‘’Some people who are seasonal leaders may become MP with the help of parties and may try to weaken the unity of the Bahujan Samaj but they will not succeed in their efforts,’’ Mayawati said without taking names.

Mayawati’s statement came in response to Chandrashekhar’s attack on BSP national coordinator and Mayawati’s nephew Akash Anand—that it was Mayawati’s compulsion to take back Anand into the party as she did not have any alternative.

Chandrashekhar also said that his party would complete the mission of BSP founder Kanshiram as Mayawati no longer enjoyed support of the Dalits. ‘’The people have already rejected Akash Anand,’’ he remarked.

Mayawati shot back and said that there were people who wanted to weaken the unity of the Bahujan Samaj and the BSP with the help of Congress, BJP and Samajwadi Party. ‘’Such people will however not succeed in their design,’’ she said.

Both Chandrashekhar and Mayawati were locked in a fierce political battle to win over the electorally influential Dalit community. Chandrashekhar is considered to wield influence over Dalits in western UP districts and has, of late, emerged as a serious challenger to Mayawati, whose party has lost ground in UP in the past few years.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the BSP failed to open its account in UP while in the 2022 Assembly polls it could win only one seat.

Political experts say that their rivalry is likely to play out in the forthcoming panchayat polls in the state.