BSP Has Different Working Style, Doesn't 'Copy' Other Parties: Mayawati Hits Back At Amit Shah

BSP chief Mayawati taking a jibe at her rival parties said that her party was of the poor and the oppressed, and not of the capitalists. She added that her party has its own way of functioning.

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati (File Photo)

New Delhi: The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati said that her party has its own way of functioning and doesn't "copy" any other party. She took and veiled jibe at the BJP leaders and said that the money in the exchequer was keeping them warm even in the cold weather.

Her response came two days after Union Home Minister Amit Shah said 'Bahanji', apparently referring to Mayawati, was yet to come out of the cold, reported PTI.

"Elections are around the corner and she has not come out for campaigning. It seems that Bahanji is already afraid," Amit Shah had said during the Jan Vishwas Yatra in Uttar Pradesh's Moradabad, Aligarh and Unnao reported the news agency. 

Mayawati told reporters in her rebuttal, "When the Congress and BJP are in power, be it at the Centre or in states, they hold public meetings one after the other just a couple of months before the elections.

"The money in the government exchequer, meant for the poor, is keeping them warm. But, when these parties are not in power, they are just like us. They do not hold public meetings, attend inaugural ceremonies or lay foundation stones before the elections," Mayawati added.

According to PTI, Mayawati further said about the crowd rallies organised by rival parties, "Half of them are government employees and the others are ticket seekers. We are seeing this in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab."

Currently, many rival parties are holding rallies in the election-bound states, the BSP leader instead said, her party was of the poor and the oppressed, and not of the capitalists.

"I am aware of the fact that if I copy other parties and hold public meetings one after the other, my people will not be able to bear the cost," Mayawati said.

"If we copy them (rival parties), there could be losses due to paucity of funds during the elections. Our party has a different style of working as far as elections are concerned. We do not want to change this even if the rival parties ridicule us or the press writes about it. Other parties should not worry about us," she said.