Different stroke: bitter end of a marriage
Different stroke: bitter end of a marriage
Lucknow,June 25:Marriages are not uncommon.Nor is divorce in certain cases.But the way it ended between the BSP and the Samajwadi Party is a cause of concern.
In less than six months, the two have become bitter enemies.A wordy duel is on and each one is blaming the other for early divorce.
Though the SP has suffered most from the alliance,BSP supremo Mayawati is more attacking.Not only has she charged some of its leaders with anti-party activities but accused its president Akhilesh Yadav of disregarding the common courtesy.
Though he has denied,she has charged him with not answering the phone calls made after defeat of most SP candidates including his wife and other close relatives.
She has gone even to the extent of calling him anti-Muslims.”He did not want tickets to be given to many Muslims.I,however,persuaded him to change the stance”.
The aim may be to wean away Muslims and do better in the Assembly by-elections to be held within six months.They matter because of the number.By-polls have to be held in as many as 12 Assembly constituencies.
Many political pundits saw it coming but they did not hope that it would come so soon.Within a fortnight of announcement of Lok Sabha results she gave indication of separation.
What looks strange to them is that instead of the SP she is sounding bitter.The party had hoped to do better in her company and improve its tally from five.But it could win the same number of seats this year which it had bagged in 2014.Worse,party president’s wife was one of the casualties.In contrast,the BSP which had drawn a blank captured ten seats.
Akhilesh is a worried man also because he had ignored the advice of his father and party founder Mulayam Singh Yadav and some others against the alliance with her because of bitter past experiences.She had allied with the BJP thrice and on all these occasions the the party had to swallow bitter pills.
She had behaved almost the same way with his party 24 years ago.After supporting the SP for some time after winning 1993 elections in alliance with it,she pulled the rug from under Mulayam feet and his government came crashing down.
Now,she has decided to go it alone and repeat her 2007 performance.After leaving the SP’s and the BJP’s company she had contested 2007 Assembly elections in the state alone and been successful.
The task is not easy for a number of reasons.First, all the Dalits are no longer with her.She has got the full backing of Jatavs or Chamars but many other Dalit castes have shifted to the BJP. Some of her remarks against Muslims after winning fewer seats in Assembly elections in 2017 even though she had given more seats to them than Dalits still hurt them.
She was opposed to dynastic politics and had not shown any undue political favour to her close relatives.She has made a departure from this practice,too.Her brother is now the vice-president and his son all-India coordinator.She has lost this advantage as well. All this does not cover her with glory.
