Thursday, May 13, 2010

[ZESTCaste] Mayawati's three years in power: Reign marred by controversies

 

http://www.ndtv.com/news/india/mayawati-completes-three-years-in-power-25160.php

Mayawati's three years in power: Reign marred by controversies

NDTV Correspondent, Thursday May 13, 2010, Lucknow

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati completes three years in power
today. Have controversies affected her popularity? (Pics) Here's a
report:

After 17 years of fractured coalitions in Uttar Pradesh, on the 13 May
2007, Mayawati was sworn in as a Chief Minister for the fourth time.
(Your comments)

But this time was different. Her much talked about social engineering
which saw the coming together of Dalits and Brahmins for the first
time in history ensured she had a simple majority in the state.

With this majority, Mayawati could finally build the memorials of
Dalit icons, including her own, that she had always wanted.

But that these memorials cost nearly 6,000 crore rupees saw the
Opposition up in arms.

"When we come to power, the bulldozer will raze them (memorials) all
down," Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav had said.

But hundreds of Dalit labourers working on Mayawati's dream projects
supported these manifestations of identity politics.

''Dalits are being given recognition for the first time. Naturally
it's a matter of pride. I feel good about it,'' said Moolchand, a
Dalit labourer.

Their pride was a happily accepted substitute for real improvement on
the ground.

And bouyed by this sentiment, Mayawati put up 80 candidates in the Lok
Sabha elections last year. Completely ignoring her formidable
Opposition, she was confident that she was well on her way to the
Capital.

But the results came as a rude shock as the voters dismissed her in
favour of the Congress.

With the cracks evident in her vote base, Mayawati knew it was time to
go back to the drawing board to ensure that every Dalit vote came back
to her.

And eventually it did when the BSP swept the by-elections. And then 48
hours before her birthday, her party made a clean sweep in the
Legislative Council elections as well.

But that appears to have been her last litmus test. Since then, the
people of Uttar Pradesh have seen her in various avatars.

At a party rally this year, Mayawati was presented a garland made of
1,000 rupee notes in front of a gathering of five lakh people, most of
who can barely afford one square meal.

From a strong anti-Brahmin chant to three fractured coalitions to an
unprecedented majority that saw her sweep to power in 2007, Mayawati
has come a long, long way.

But the last three years of her term have been rocked by several
controversies. With the Assembly elections now only two years away,
the big question on everyone's mind is - Will her charisma stand firm
in the face of these controversies?

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