Mayawati charges Rs 15 crore per ticket, claims Maneka Gandhi

Sultanpur, Apr 04: Union minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Maneka Gandhi on Wednesday described BSP chief Mayawati as a "merchant of tickets" and alleged that she does not give her party tickets to anyone without taking money.

Maneka Gandhi, who is contesting from Sultanpur parliamentary constituency, also accused the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister of not being loyal to anyone.

"Everybody knows that Mayawati sells tickets and even her partymen admits it proudly. She has 77 houses. Mayawati's family also admits proudly that she accepts diamond or money. She takes Rs 15 crore per party ticket," Maneka Gandhi said while addressing a rally in Sultanpur.

"Mayawati is not loyal to anybody (Mayawati kisi ki nahi hai). Her (party's) ticket cannot be obtained without currency notes," she alleged.

In 2016, two Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLAs accused the party leadership of demanding "huge sums" for allotting tickets for the 2017 UP Assembly polls, prompting the party to suspend them hours after they levelled the allegation.

The lawmakers -- Palia MLA Romi Sahni and Mallawan MLA Brijesh Verma -- later joined the BJP.

PTI