Embarrassed BJP sacks UP VP for remarks against Mayawati
Updated
New Delhi, Jul 20 (PTI): BJP today sacked its Uttar Pradesh vice president Dayashankar Singh from all party posts after his derogatory remarks against BSP chief Mayawati sparked massive uproar and pushed the saffron party in a tight corner.
UP BJP President Keshav Prasad Maurya told reporters that Singh has been relieved of all posts and said "such language has no place in the party".
BJP has been wooing dalits, a politically crucial community in Uttar Pradesh which goes to the polls early next year, and Singh's comments have the potential to damage its efforts. The party hopes that it will be able to contain the damage by acting swiftly against him.
"He has been relieved of all responsibilities in the party. There is no place for such language in BJP," Maurya said.
As his remarks drew all-round flak, even from his own party, Singh tried to do some damage control by apologising and claimed it was a "slip of tongue".
A furious Mayawati, who is a dalit leader, demanded that Singh be expelled and warned the government in the Rajya Sabha that she will not be responsible if people hit the streets. Her party threatened to take legal action against the BJP leader.
She was joined by leaders from other parties, including Congress.
Union Minister Arun Jaitley immediately distanced the BJP from Singh's comments and offered his regret.
"It is not right and I condemn the use of such words. I express personal regrets. I associate our dignity with yours and stand with you," Jaitley said.
Earlier Report
New Delhi, Jul 20 (Agencies) : It could not have come at a worse time for the BJP. Just as its government at the Centre fire-fights an aggressive opposition allegation of being anti-Dalit in the wake of protests in Gujarat, one of its top leaders has ended up comparing Mayawati with a prostitute.
Even the presence of a large number of TV cameras did not stop the BJP's Uttar Pradesh vice-president Dayashankar Singh from making a shameful attack on the Bahujan Samaj Party chief, who has served as the Chief Minister of the state for four terms.
"Even a prostitute fulfils her commitment to a man after she is paid. But Mayawati, such a big leader in UP, sells party tickets to anyone who pays her the highest amount. If someone gives her Rs one crore for a ticket, she will give it to the other person who is offering Rs 2 crores," Singh told reporters, repeatedly using the word "veshya" in Hindi.
Ironically, the video of Singh emerged just when Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh was speaking in Parliament, where he attempted to counter the BJP's anti-Dalit tag given by opposition parties over the Una incident in his party-ruled Gujarat.
The stripping and brutal beating of four Dalit men on July 11 by cow protection vigilantes allegedly belonging to the BJP's ally, the Shiv Sena, has triggered massive protests by the community in Gujarat and outside.
In Parliament today, Mayawati was at the forefront of the attack on the government as her intervention repeatedly forced the adjournement of the Rajya Sabha. There has been no reaction so far on Dayashankar Singh's derogatory remarks from her party, the BSP.
With elections in the crucial state of Uttar Pradesh due next year, politics will be the casualty as it hits new lows.