Mayawati shuns tainted MLA Ansari as politics comes full circle in U.P.
The Hindu
In January 2017, just weeks ahead of voting for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls campaign, the Bahujan Samaj Party, desperate to return to power, made a risky move of welcoming into its ranks criminal
In January 2017, just weeks ahead of voting for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls campaign, the Bahujan Samaj Party, desperate to return to power, made a risky move of welcoming into its ranks criminally tainted MLA from Purvanchal, Mukhtar Ansari, his brothers Afzal Ansari and Sigbatullah Ansari, and son Abbas. The Ansaris had been shunned by Mayawati's opponent and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav as part of his clean-image drive. While defending the induction of the jailed MLA Mukhtar Ansari, Ms. Mayawati had said that, "There are bigger goondas in other parties," as she suggested that many of the criminal cases against Mr. Mukhtar Ansari were nor genuine. Ms. Mayawati had hoped to reap benefit from the clout the Ansaris held in pockets of Purvanchal — Ghazipur, Mau, Ballia and Varanasi-- while also sending a larger message to the Muslims as part of her strategy — later proven a failure — to unite the Dalit and Muslim voters.More Related News
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