BSP opportunist party, says Paswan

Shimla, Dec 9 (UNI) Union Fertilizer Minister Ram Vilas Paswan today termed the BSP an opportunist party and said its ''social engineering'' theory is just an attempt to win over the people from the upper castes.

Mr Paswan, who was here to release his Lok Janshkti Party's manifesto for the Himachal Pradesh assembly polls, said the BSP was not a representative of the Dalits in the country following its caste based politics in the Uttar Pradesh and other states of the country.

''No party could solve the problems of the SCs, STs and OBCs in the country merely by following the politics of caste,'' he said.

He said while the other parties were trying to build a casteless society where every individual was equal before the rule of the law, the BSP was following the politics of caste.

Mr Paswan said it was not the social engineering formula that succeeded for the BSP in Uttar Pradesh, but it was the massive resentment of the voters against the Mulayam Singh's Government that brought Mayawati to power.

''If it was so, why Ms Mayawati's social engineering formula was not successful in Punjab and Uttaranchal assembly polls,'' he questioned.

Taking a dig at the BSP's decision to project Mr Mankotia as its chief ministerial candidate, the Union Minister said as against the BSP, the LJP was in no position to form a government.

''Why to project a CM when it's a fact that party is not going to make any government in the state,'' he asked He said the party's only aim was to make strengthen its base in the state.

The party in its manifesto has promised free electricity for farmers, inclusion of right of work in the list of rights, to provide subsidy on all kinds of fertilizers, bring apples under the cash crop insurance scheme, setting up of sports training centre in every district and expansion of railway in the state.

UNI