BSP Cadres in Rajasthan, MP Hope 'Mayawati Plays Kingmaker – Before Becoming Queen in 2019'

Lucknow, May 27: The political developments in the past couple of months have uplifted the morale of BSP cadres in northern India. After a five year lull, which was caused by a string of defeats between 2012 to 2017, the base of the Mayawati-led party has something to cheer about as their supremo played a key role in determining the poll outcome in Phulpur, Gorakhpur – and if analysts are to be believed, her support to JD(S) proved critical for the party to wrest nearly a dozen Dalit-dominated seats in Karnataka.

The recent electoral reverses has brought not only Mayawati into the limelight, but also her long-held aspiration to become the first Dalit prime minister of India.

While the BSP workers in poll-bound Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh are delighted about Mayawati's prospects to become the next PM, they are hopeful that she agrees to play the second fiddle to the Congress in the two states, where assembly elections are slated for later this year.

"We want Mayawati to play the kingmaker here – before becoming the queen in 2019," said Bhanwarilal Ramesh, a BSP worker and Dalit activist in Rajasthan.

The BSP has a limited, but crucial electoral presence in the state. In the 2008 elections, the party had won 8 assembly seats. The legislators, however, defected to the Congress after Ashok Gehlot was elected as the CM with a paper-thin majority.

The party came down to 3 seats in 2013. Ramesh claims the battle will be uphill if no pre-poll pact is inked with the Congress. "Only the BJP will be benefited if we (Congress and BSP) fight the elections separately," Ramesh added.

In Madhya Pradesh, where the BJP is facing 15 years of incumbency, the Congress is considered to be a prime challenger. But what could aid the saffron party is a division of anti-BJP votes in SC/ST constituencies between the Congress and BSP.

As per the BSP's own survey, the party is likely to influence the poll results in 55 constituencies, apart from directly impacting the outcome in upto 14 constituencies.

"Congress is in a position to perform better than the BJP in the upcoming polls. But an alliance with the BSP will allow them to deroot the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government from the state," said Sagar-based BSP leader Rajkumar Jatav.

Analysts claim Mayawati prefers entering into alliances with the regional parties, rather than the Congress, as seen in Karnataka. However, since there is no third reckoning force in MP and Rajasthan, she is likely to ink a pre-poll agreement with the Congress. What fuels the expectation is the unprecedented bonhomie on display between Mayawati and Sonia Gandhi at the swearing-in ceremony of HD Kumaraswamy.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 27, 2018 01:47 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).