'BSP will capture power in UP in next elections'

Mangalore, Nov 27: Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) General Secretary Gandhi Azad today predicted that his party, led by Ms Mayawati, would capture power in Uttar Pradesh for the fourth time in the State elections next year.

Inaugurating the Bahujan determination day and delegates conference of Mangalore and Udupi Lok Sabha constituencies here, he said that even the media had indicated that BSP would win the coming Uttar Pradesh elections with a thumping majority. If the party came to power in that state on its own strength, it would manage to send at least 50 MPs in the next general elections.

''If we secure 50 seats, we may require another about 40 parliamentary seats to gain a commanding position to form a BSP Government at the Centre with the help of other like-minded parties.

When leaders like Chandrashekar, Charan Singh, H D Deve Gowda, A B Vajpayee and Dr Manmohan Singh who were in a minority can form the Government at the Centre, why can't Mayawati,'' the Rajya Sabha member said.

Terming the BSP leader late Kanshiram as an ''Yug Purush'', Mr Azad said he had three missions in life, of which the one on capturing power in Uttar Pradesh had been fulfilled in his lifetime.

The other two -- capturing power at the Centre and converting India into 'Bouddhmay Bharath' remained unfulfilled. It was the moral responsibility of every Bahujan to ensure that the two unfulfilled dreams of Kanshiram were fulfilled, he added.

Criticising the successive Union Governments for escalation of prices of essential commodities at the instance of big industrialists who have funded these parties during elections, he said the BSP strongly believed in collecting contributions from its mass base to fight elections. He called upon the youth from the Bahujan community to not only contribute two per cent of their earnings to the party as wished by Kanshiram, but also go to the villages to create awareness amog the rural Bahujan people about the dreams of their leader.

UNI