Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawatis efforts to expand her partys base in Rajasthan have received a jolt,with all six party MLAs in the newly elected House rising in revolt against the BSP in-charge of Rajasthan unit,Dharam Singh Ashok. They voted for the Congress Government led by Ashok Gehlot in Saturdays trust vote in the Assembly. Perturbed by the developments,Mayawati,who reached Delhi on Monday,summoned Dharam Singh to meet her later in the evening. The six MLAs who voted for Gehlot were Rajendra Gudda,Rajkumar Sharma,Murarilal Meena,Ram Kesh Meena,Ramesh Meena and Giriraj Singh. Gudda told The Indian Express that they wanted Dharam Singh removed as in-charge of Rajasthan. All BSP MLAs are unhappy with him,he functions like a dictator. We wont allow him to continue, said Gudda. Accusing Dharam Singh of conniving with the BJP,Gudda said: The BJP tried to convince us to oppose the Government,although we have won against the BJP. It was not possible to side with the BJP. However,he was non-committal on whether they had reached any understanding with the Congress. While Dharam Singh could not be contacted,Rajasthan BSP president Dungar Ram Gendar refused to comment. The Congress itself is keeping mum,with state party president C P Joshi only confirming: They had met the Chief Minister. Incidentally Gehlot had said on more than one occasion earlier that the BSP would support them. While the support didnt really mean much in numbers,it gave the Congress a great psychological boost. Rajkumar Sharma,a former NSUI leader,is believed to have played a key role in convincing the other BSP MLAs. A Congressman,he had switched over to the BSP after being denied a ticket in the elections. State BSP leaders say they were under no obligation to support the Congress and had been told by Delhi to take decisions based on local political conditions. There were several atrocities against Dalits and weaker sections of society during the BJP reign. We will continue to extend support to the Congress based on their commitment to develop the state, Gudda said. Gudda charged that the BSP had paid a price for the fact that Dharam Singh did not understand Rajasthan. I had suggested 10 names for party tickets,Dharam Singh rejected all of them. Most of them won the elections as Independents, he said. He never allows us to meet Mayawati. If the party persists with him as state in-charge,the message would be clear: that Dharam Singhs actions are in accordance with the party line.
