Mayawati wants Bharat Ratna for Kanshi Ram

Lucknow, Jan 13: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief, Mayawati today said that the Bharat Ratna should also be conferred on her party's founder Kanshi Ram for his contributions in the uplift of the Dalits.

"Kanshi Ram should also be conferred Bharat Ratna for his invaluable contributions in the uplift of Dalits and the oppressed," she said. Earlier, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L K Advani wrote a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh recommending that the top civilian award be given to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

After that the name of the CPI-M veteran Jyoti Basu had also cropped up.

But, today, the Left has put cold water on its suggestions, saying that the party does not accept state awards.

On Thursday, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi had said that the issue must not be raised in public.

ANI