Prime Minister Narendra Modi has adopted a divide and rule strategy to create a rift in the SP-BSP-RLD alliance to save the BJP’s honour in the next three phases of the Lok Sabha polls, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati said on Sunday.

“He tried everything in his might to destroy the ‘mahagathbandhan’. In keeping with his ‘phoot daalo, raj karo’ strategy, he said several erroneous things at his election rally in Pratapgarh yesterday. He wants the SP-BSP-RLD to fight with each other. His motive is to mislead our party workers,” Mayawati was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Continuing her attack, the BSP chief said her party was working with the goal of removing the BJP from the country on May 23, when the results of the Lok Sabha elections will be announced.

She also accused the Congress and BJP of being “chips of the same block”. “People of the country know that we have not allied with the Congress party because we believe that both BJP and Congress are ‘ek thali ke chatte batte’ (chips of the same block).”

She, however, contended that her party gave up the Amethi and Raebareli Lok Sabha seats for the Congress as they wanted the top leaders in both the seats to fight off and weaken the forces of BJP and RSS in the country.

“Vote from the ‘mahagathbandan’ will go to the Congress in these two seats and I would request those who support BSP to do the same,” she said.

Out of 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, 39 have gone to polls in the first four phases. The remaining 41 constituencies will go to polls in the next three phases of elections scheduled on May 6, 12 and 19.

Both Amethi and Raebareli will vote in the fifth phase of general elections on May 6. The counting of votes will take place on May 23.

First Published: May 05, 2019 17:50 IST