Deoband: Appealing to Muslims to vote for the gathbandhan as only the SP and BSP can defeat the BJP, Mayawati on Sunday urged the community to not let its vote get split by siding with the Congress.
The open appeal to the minority community came at the first joint rally held by the two alliance partners in 25 years at Deoband.
"I want to make an open appeal. It's not the Congress but the alliance which is fighting the BJP. Congress wants to ensure the alliance does not win. Congress is trying to help the BJP in this election," she said while sharing the stage with Akhilesh Yadav and RLD chief Ajit Singh.
Citing the example of Saharanpur, she alleged that the Congress had brought in a Muslim face in the constituency at a later date only to cut the votes of the gathbandhan.
“Muslims in Saharanpur know that our Muslim candidate had been decided earlier. But Congress also fielded a Muslim," she said.
At the rally, held less than a week before voting for the first phase of voting, the BSP supremo slammed both the BJP and the Congress.
"BJP will lose this election because of policies inspired by hatred... especially their "chowkidar" campaign... no matter how much the chhote, bade chowkidars try, the BJP will not win," she said, and added that the Congress too has failed despite ruling for so many years.
Targeting the Congress and Rahul Gandhi for the NYAY (minimum income guarantee) scheme, Mayawati said that her government instead of giving minimum income support, will give employment to poor people.
“Rahul Gandhi’s grandmother Indira Gandhi too made a 20-point programme to remove poverty, but was it effective?" she asked amid loud cheers from the crowd.
She said, "We are silent workers, unlike other parties. Our party performs without making noise, we are silent workers. The Congress too has been making tall claims, haven't they been given enough chances for decades? They were wiped out from several states. The Nyay scheme is not a stable solution for removing poverty."
At the same time, she said the BJP government has been misusing probe agencies. "Even the people from backward communities are suffering... The divisive thought process of these parties are hurting these communities... At the Centre, or state level... reservation issue for these communities was ignored. These communities are not benefiting from the reservation. They are being exploited. Minorities are also suffering."
Mayawati said corruption has increased at every level. "The Congress was tainted by bofors. BJP government is tainted by Rafale... The BJP government has been misusing probe agencies - CBI, ED - against its rivals. You don't need to give another chance to them. The parties that have already been given enough chances. In the election season, political parties use opinion polls to misguide voters. Do not get swayed," she appealed to the voters.
She assured the electorate that if voted to power, farmers will no longer be in debt.
"Sugarcane farmers are suffering in UP... their grievances are being ignored amid empty announcements. When our party was in power, we made sure dues of sugarcane farmers were paid," the former chief minister said.
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