Former BSP leader Swamy Prasad Maurya joins BJP

Former Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader Swamy Prasad Maurya on Monday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), saying that former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and BSP supremo Mayawati is no longer running a political party but a "business house".

"Now BSP is no more a political party, but it has become a business house," Maurya told reporters here.

"In the name of Dalits Mayawati is selling party tickets. She has sold the dreams of Dr B.R. Ambedkar," Maurya said, adding, "And now even the names of the candidates are replaced if someone offers more amount, which is not an insult to only Dr B.R. Ambedkar and party founder Kanshi Ram but also to the Constitution."

Attacking Mayawati, Maurya said, "Mayawati wishes to project backward candidates only on 26 to 27 seats out of the 403 seats."

"Even during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections she gave only 16 tickets to the backward candidates, while on the other hand the BJP gave 29 seats to the candidates from backward community," he said.

Maurya also thanked the BJP leadership and said that several other colleagues will join the BJP in Lucknow, including former minister Vinay Shakya.

Maurya also accused Mayawati of keeping the interest of the Dalits at bay. He asserted that the development of the state is possible under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose government believes in "Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas".

He was welcomed in the party by BJP national president Amit Shah, party General Secretary Om Mathur, who is in-charge of the party's affairs in Uttar Pradesh, state unit chief Keshav Prasad Maurya, senior leaders Rameshwar Chaurasia and Shrikant Sharma, and others.

Maurya, who was Leader of Opposition in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly, quit the BSP on June 22. He had accused Mayawati of "selling" party tickets and giving up the principles and ideology of party founder Kanshi Ram.

"His joining BJP would help us in countering the corrupt rule of the Samajwadi Party and the BSP," Keshav Prasad Maurya said.

The BJP state chief asserted that there will be no corrupt rule in the state and the party will come to power in 2017.

--IANS

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