Choose 'Jai Bhim' followers over those chanting 'NaMo' this election: Mayawati

Jalaun: BSP president Mayawati Friday said people are going to bid goodbye to those chanting 'NaMo, NaMo' and choose the ones who follow 'Jai Bhim' in this Lok Sabha election.

Addressing a rally here, the former chief minister said, "This time you all are going to bid goodbye to the NaMo-NaMo people and choose Jai Bhim followers in the elections." Prime Minister Narendra Modi is often referred to as 'NaMo' by his supporters. Mayawati said the BJP will be removed from power at the Centre this time and no amount of "jumlebaazi" or "natakbaazi" was going to help them. "Their new 'natakbazi of chowkidari' is also not going to save them," the BSP supremo added. She alleged that the BJP had made several promises before coming to power but all of those turned out to be hollow.

Targeting the Congress, Mayawati said although the party had been in power for most of the time since Independence, its wrong policies and works ultimately led to its ouster. She accused the Congress of ignoring those belonging to the 'sarv samaj', especially the weaker sections, the poor and the unemployed, and alleged that the party neglected Bundelkhand and did nothing for poverty alleviation and employment generation in this region.

The Congress says it will remove poverty but had they really done anything about it, the party would not have gone out of power, the BSP chief said. "Had they taken care of the 'sarv samaj', we would not have felt the need to form the BSP," she added.