Opposing Mayawati’s statue inauguration spree has cost Munna Singh Chauhan his party membership. Chauhan, who was earlier with the SP and the BJP, had contested the Lok Sabha polls as a BSP candidate. The BSP has now expelled him along with another senior functionary Subhash Sharma, citing indiscipline as the reason. However, the apparent reason appears to be a letter shot off by Chauhan to party chief Mayawati in which he had asked her to refrain from unveiling statues and reminded her that the money spent on memorials could be used for the betterment of Dalits.

Confirming their expulsion from the party, BSP’s Uttarakhand president Megh Raj said, “They have been expelled on disciplinary grounds. Both of them have not attended a single meeting of the party after the Lok Sabha polls.”

While Sharma was unavailable for comments, Chauhan said, “I have not received any communication to this effect. I wrote a confidential letter to Mayawati asking her to stop erecting statues. Perhaps it was not taken in the right spirit. But I have no regrets. I had written to her saying that statues will not improve the living standard of any Dalit or provide them with education and health care. The money used to construct memorials could be spent on providing employment and removing poverty.” He added that he will contest the Vikas Nagar Assembly bypoll.

Chauhan had quit his membership from the state Assembly and that of the BJP to contest the Lok Sabha election from Tehri on a BSP ticket. He lost to Vijay Bahuguna of the Congress.

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