Lucknow: Three people died while at least 25 others were injured in a stampede at Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati’s rally in
15 children have also been reported missing following the stampede, which saw an attendance of around 1 lakh, said reports.
Following the incident, Home Minister Rajnath Singh spoke to the DGP of Uttar Pradesh who apprised him of the situation in
Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each for the families of the victims.
The BSP had booked more than a dozen trains and thousand vehicles to bring supporters and workers to
Alleging that minorities were facing bias under Modi government, BSP Chief Mayawati on Sunday cautioned Muslims that voting for Samajwadi Party or Congress will only help BJP and sought their support "to stop" the saffron party.
Muslims should not waste their vote as there is infighting in Samajwadi Party and Congress lacks a voter base in Uttar Pradesh, Mayawati said while addressing a rally in
"Ever since the BJP government has come at the Centre, Muslims and other minorities are being subjected to bias. The minority status of
"Communal forces are becoming stronger and Muslims are being targeted in the name of love jihad, 'gau raksha' (cow protection) and religious conversion," the BSP supremo alleged launching a scathing attack on the Modi government.
"To stop the BJP, the vote should not go to either the Samajwadi Party or the Congress as with every Assembly seat having 22 to 23 per cent Dalit votes, BSP can sail through with the help of Muslim votes or else the same scenario can emerge that was seen in 2014," she stressed.
Mayawati clarified that the BSP would not be entering any pre-poll alliance with any party in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and
Attacking the Modi government, the BSP chief said that they had done nothing for UP since coming to power in 2014. The downtrodden were promised food, water and electricity, and the farmers loan waiver, but only the rich farmers benefited, she alleged.
Speaking about the surgical strikes across the LoC, Mayawati said, "It is only after two-and-a-half years of coming in the power the government decided to carry out the strikes. Strikes were also carried out earlier but the BJP government is using them for political mileage."
Taking on the ruling Samajwadi Party government, Mayawati stated that since it came to power, there has been a rule of criminals. Communal politics is rife in Uttar Pradesh and these incidents of Dalit atrocities in Una and Dadri are a proof of it, she claimed.
In the wake of the recent defections from the party, 13 sitting MLAs showcased its strength at the event, said reports. The BSP supremo claimed that her party was confident of winning an absolute majority in the upcoming state elections.
Mayawati, who had faced criticism for spending hundreds of crores of rupees in setting up memorials of herself, Kanshi Ram and B R Ambedkar, also said her party will not construct any more memorials.
