Mayawati expels 'fence sitter' MLA

Lucknow, Oct 7: Bahujan Samaj Party president and former chief minister Mayawati today expelled Unnao party MLA Kuldip Sengar for hobnobbing with the ruling Samajwadi Party and said three more legislators were on her hit list.

Talking to reporters here, she said Kuldip Sengar was trying to switch over to Samajwadi Party and was not loyal to the BSP. ''While several BSP MLAs were bought over, I was able to convince Sengar against switching over. His relative and SP leader Arvind Singh Gope was trying to win him over...I made false assurances to stop him.

Now I have decided to expel him,'' she said.

Ms Mayawati claimed that three more legislators with two minds to switch loyalties would face the same consequence in the coming days.

Soon after she resigned as Chief Minister in August, 2003, 40 of her MLAs had formed Loktantrik Bahujan Dal (LBD) which later merged with SP when Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav formed alternative government in UP.

The former CM said efforts were on to finalise tickets for the coming assembly elections. ''I am finalising seats where we had lost in the last elections...some of the candidates have been finalised,'' she said.

She claimed that those who had not been loyal to the party and its principles would not be given ticket.

UNI