BSP exhorts Brahmins and Dalits to join hands to oust BJP in Uttar Pradesh

BSP on Friday virtually kicked off its election campaign to capture power in Uttar Pradesh in the forthcoming assembly polls, which are due early next year, by appealing to the electorally influential Brahmin and Dalit communities to join hands to 'oust' the BJP and help the BSP form the next government.

The party made the appeal at its first of the seven 'Brahmin Sammelans' at Ayodhya, aimed at bringing back the electorally influential community to its fold.

BSP general secretary S.C.Mishra, who addressed the meeting, which was re-coined as 'Prabuddh Sammelan' in view of a ban imposed on the caste-based meetings by the court, said that no force could stop BSP from forming the next government in UP if the two communities supported the party.

Mishra also paid obeisance at the makeshift Ram Temple and the famous Hanumangarhi temple at Ayodhya.

Mishra slammed the BJP for indulging in politicking in the name of Lord Rama and said that the latter belonged to everyone. ''We also worship Lord Rama but we don't bring him into politics,'' he said. He also ruled out the possibility of an alliance in the next polls.

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As part of his party's efforts to woo the saint community ahead of the next year's elections, the BSP leader also met some important seers in the temple town and sought their blessings.

Mishra said that BSP was the only party, which accorded due respect to the Brahmins. ''BSP had fielded the largest number of Brahmin candidates in the past assembly polls in the state.....there were many ministers from the community in the BSP government in 2007,'' he added.

Several prominent Brahmin leaders of the BSP, including former UP ministers Nakul Dubey, Antu Mishra and others, were present at the meeting.

BSP would be holding six more such meetings at Ambedkar Nagar, Pratapgarh, Kaushambi, Prayagraj, Sultanpur and Mathura in the first phase. More such meetings would be held in Western UP districts in the second phase.