Nehru did not pay heed to Ambedkar’s advice on reservation for poor of upper classes: Mayawati

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After a rousing welcome amid slogans like ‘Desh ki neta kaisi ho, behan Mayawati jaisi ho’, Desh ki majboori hai, Mayawati jaroori hai’, Mayawati, who landed at the venue in a blue and white chopper, said, “Aap logon ke josh ko dekh ke aisa lag raha hai ki Punjab bhi inn ‘NaMo NaMo’ karne walon ki jaroor chhutti karne wale hain (After seeing your enthusiasm it seems you have made your minds about sending those who are chanting ‘NaMo Namo’ home)”.

Attacking the Congress she said that after independence, the party ruled the country and states for the longest period but remained on Dalits and poor. “When the first Congress government was formed in the country, Baba Saheb (Ambedkar) was first law minister in that government and he realised that Dalits, Tribals and Backwards could not get the benefits as per the provisions of the Constitution. He told Pt. Nehru and also apprised him that even poorest of the poor of other classes must be taken under reservation policy for which a commission must be formed under Article 340 of the Constitution,” she said, adding that “no attention was paid to words of Dr Saheb”, and he then resigned from his post on moral grounds.

“Then Baba sahib made the Dalits of the country aware that under Congress rule, you cannot get the legal rights given to you in the Constitution and suggested forming a separate party, which led to the birth of BSP by its founder Kanshi Ram on April 14, 1984 (Ambedkar’s birthday),” she added. Mayawati also the targeted Congress for not implementing the Mandal Commission Report on reservation and not conferring the Bharat Ratan to Dr Ambedkar.
She also said that Congress’ NYAY scheme of giving Rs 6,000 monthly to poor farmers is not a solution to eradicate poverty, and said, “We will give jobs to them in place of such amount”.

“In 1989, when former PM V P Singh’s government, a coalition government, came into being, we supported it from outside as we had three MPs on two conditions — One, to implement the Mandal Commission report and second, to confer Bharat Ratna to Dr B R Ambedkar,” she said, adding the VP Singh government agreed to her demands but BJP “went on a rampage across the country against the implementation of Mandal Commission report” and Singh’s government got dissolved.

“How this BJP could be well-wishers of Dalits? BJP only knows how to take the vote of these people but it is a party of capitalists,” said she, adding that now the “jumlabaazi and dramebaazi of all these chowkidars will not work for them in these LS elections and even Akali Dal cannot save them in Punjab”.

“Not even 1/4th promises were fulfilled by the BJP which had made the rich more rich and poor more poor. The quota of reservations in jobs for Dalits/ Tribals and Backwards has still not been filled till date. Atrocities are being committed against Dalits, Muslims, Sikhs and Christians under BJP rule. Poor people of the the upper casts are also in bad shape,” she alleged.

“They have implemented demonetisation in a hurry, resulting in de-stablising poor and the middle class,” Mayawati said, and asked “where are the Rs 15 lakh which were to be deposited in every poor person’s account by BJP?”