Mayawati sacks 2 party veterans on charges of anti-party activities

LUCKNOW: In a move that surprised many within the party and leaves BSP highly vulnerable ahead of the 2022 UP Assembly polls, party chief Mayawati on Thursday expelled two of its senior most leaders, Lalji Verma and Ram Achal Rajbhar, for anti-party activities during the just-concluded panchayat polls.
Verma was the head of BSP legislative party and a former minister CL Verma. Rajbhar, a five-time MLA and a BSP veteran was former state president of the party. Verma has been replaced as chief of the legislative party by two-time Azamgarh MLA Shah Alam.
The move also leaves the party with just seven MLAs, out of 19 who were originally elected in 2017. In October 2020, Mayawati had suspended seven MLAs on charges of conspiring against the party and trying to sabotage the election of BSP’s Rajya Sabha candidate Ramji Gautam. The seven MLAs, who were finally expelled, were in touch with the Samajwadi Party, Mayawati had said.
Earlier, two other MLAs had rebelled too while one, Ritesh Pandey, became an MP in 2019. His seat went to SP in October 2020 bypolls.
The move also leaves the party with just seven MLAs, out of 19 originally elected in 2017. In October 2020, party chief Mayawati had suspended seven MLAs on charges of conspiring against the party and trying to sabotage the election of BSP’s Rajya Sabha candidate Ramji Gautam. The seven MLAs, Mayawati had said, were in touch with the Samajwadi Party.
Verma and Rajbhar were MLAs from Katehari and Akbarpur respectively, both part of the Ambedkar Nagar constituency, a BSP stronghold.
Verma, who has held several important portfolios including finance under the previous BSP governments, told TOI that he was making efforts to speak to Mayawati but had not been successful till Thursday evening. He accused another party leader from Ambedkar Nagar, Ghanshyam Singh Kharwar, of having lied to the party chief about him, which led to the action against him.
“Kharwar has created misinformation about me, saying that I am planning to move to SP or BJP. I have been trying to talk to Behenji but have not been successful. I was down with Covid when the panchayat elections took place and in hospital. I have called senior party leader SC Mishra also but he has not taken my call. Right now I am in touch with other party members to see what can be done,” Verma told TOI, adding that he had learnt about his expulsion from the party through a press note issued by the BSP.
He added that when he was unwell, Mayawati had called him thrice to ask about his health and had assured him of all help. “I may quit politics completely if things do not work out with BSP,” he said.
Rajbhar was UP BSP president till 2018 after which he was appointed joint national general secretary. He also was a minister in all four governments headed by Mayawati in UP. At the time of his expulsion, he did not hold any position in the party.