UPA anti-people, but will support it for now: Mayawati

Lucknow  :  Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati Wednesday once again rapped the Manmohan Singh-led UPA 2 but stopped short of spelling out whether she is snapping her relations with the union government.

After a two-hour long meeting of her party’s Parliamentary Party Board meeting preceded by the extensive national executive meet late Tuesday, the BSP supremo labelled the UPA government “anti-poor, anti-farmer and pro-corporate”.

Addressing a press conference at the state party headquarters, the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister avoided saying whether she is withdrawing support to such a government, but added the party’s two top bodies have authorised her to take a decision and that she would soon take an appropriate decision.

“Mujhe faisla lene ki jimmewaari saunpi gayi hai aur main bahut jald is mudde par apna faisla loongi,” she said.

When asked why she was not taking a prompt decision on the matter as she had already said that the union government was anti-people, she said she needed time to think over the whole issue, but promised that it was going to be “very soon”.

Asked whether the fear of a revival of cases pending against her by the Central Bureau of Investigation was at work, she refused to respond, saying her answers would be limited to topics relevant to the day.

She also told the media that the UPA government was unstable and its future uncertain. She repeated that she was of the view that snap polls for the Lok Sabha could take place anytime now. She made it amply clear that her party’s patience was running out.

A senior party leader told IANS that Mayawati no longer wanted to be seen with an “anti-people” party.

During her deliberations with party leaders before meeting the press, there was “an overwhelming sense that Mayawati should stop supporting the Manmohan Singh government”, an informed source said.

“The growing unpopularity of the UPA government and the risks of siding with it were discussed threadbare, and due to lack of any consensus, the issue was left to Behenji to decide,” a senior party MP told IANS.

“We had extended our support to the UPA government in the hope that this government will weaken communal forces, uplift the poor and protect the religious minorities, but sadly, that is not happening. We are disappointed with the government,” Mayawati said later.

She said the government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was not taking any firm steps to curb rising prices of food and essential commodities as well as against corruption.

The BSP has 21 members in the Lok Sabha.

Mayawati said the party would emerge as “a balance of power” as and when the next parliamentary elections are held.

File Photo : AFP