Politics

Mayawati Vows to Reassess Muslim Support After Lok Sabha Election Defeat

Mayawati claimed that even though her party had a sizable number of Muslim candidates on its list, the Muslim community did not support her party in the Lok Sabha elections, one day after the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) failed to register an electoral victory. Her party was not understood by the community, she claimed, and only after “a lot of thought” would she give them another chance in the polls.

The BSP has previously lost Lok Sabha elections without picking up a single seat. 2014 saw the party’s account not being opened. Because they ran in an alliance with the Samajwadi Party in the 2019 elections, they were able to win 10 seats. Mayawati promised in a statement that her party would investigate the circumstances surrounding its dismal showing in Uttar Pradesh.

She expressed her disappointment at not receiving the backing of the Muslim population, who seemed to have voted for the INDIA bloc, claiming that they were unable to comprehend her.

“Even though the Muslim community, a significant component of the Bahujan Samaj Party, has received adequate representation in previous elections and the current Lok Sabha general elections, they are unable to comprehend the BSP effectively. In order to prevent the party from suffering a catastrophic loss in the future similar to this one, the party would give them a chance in the polls after giving it careful thought, Mayawati stated, as reported.

35 Muslim candidates were put forth by the BSP. Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party, Mayawati’s erstwhile ally, broke through the BJP’s hegemony by winning 37 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh. Rae Bareli and Amethi were among the six Lok Sabha seats that their INDIA bloc ally, the Congress, won. Only 33 seats were won by the Bharatiya Janata Party, which had won both of the previous general elections with overwhelming margins. The party only won 240 seats nationwide.

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The BJP was ultimately 32 seats short of a simple majority. 2019 saw them win 303 seats. The Congress and the Samajwadi Party have pushed Mayawati to join the INDIA alliance prior to the elections. That being said, she turned down their advances.