India’s most powerful low-caste politician has been preparing to take power in the country’s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh. Former schoolteacher Mayawati Kumari’s Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) won 206 constituencies, giving her a narrow majority in the 403-seat state assembly, the election commission said on Saturday.
Like most nations with multiple parties, an outright majority is unusual – and guarantees a predominant role in the coalition resulting from the election.
The results paved the way for the outspoken leader to take the state chief minister’s office for the fourth time. Mayawati’s legislators started arriving in Lucknow, the state capital, for a meeting at which she was due to be formally elected to lead her party in the provincial house.
The victory surprised her rivals and contradicted exit polls.
“People of all castes have brought us to power,” Mayawati told a press conference, as she thanked the upper-castes and Muslims for spurning their traditional preferences to vote for her.
Previous elections saw all the contenders – including Maya – relying exclusively on followers from their own caste. Mayawati abandoned that tactic after the previous election and reached out to form a coalition which included Brahmins, Muslims and other segments in the state.
Of course, Mayawati isn’t the first to claim to be a “united, not a divider”. Time will show if she’s a truth-teller or not.
Well, she has already delivered on the “uniting”. I’m not holding my breath on the “Commander Gal” sound bite.
Is a powerful Dalit (low caste) = a weak Brahmin/Kshatriya (upper caste)?
Is there a mathematical proof for that?
Even if there is a large portion of the country that wants to get away from the caste system, the media and politicians will not allow it to happen
I dont have a problem with the caste system..
I have a problem with HOW people see it.
If the group responsible for removing garbadge, QUIT… Those ABOVE are screwed.. And if those ABOVE dont understand THAT….THey are double screwed.
ALL sections must apreciate/acknowledge ALL the rest.
If you dont….Im sorry.
Even in the USA, the Gov, has forgotten Many things.
They forget that Giving money to the poor, Feeds them and gives comfort, and the money WALKS uphill, makeing everyone Feel better.
I remember, back in 1975, one of the first lessons I ever had in “Social Studies” was the caste systems of India. It wasn’t reviewed in future years, unlike nouns and verbs which we were still taught about in Senior High School. No, it was forgotten or swept aside or re-thought…
So, here we 32 years later, and I’m wondering if the goal was to create analogies with modern Amerikano culture, so the jocks wouldn’t pick on the nerds (or whatever). I was 6 when they were teaching this. When they talked about Indians, I thought they meant spear-chucking North American natives that hunted bison.
Castes: outdated (WAY outdated), time for third-world countries pretending to be Amerikan to actually adopt the whole of Amerikan politics (minus the greed, corruption, etc.)…
Ahh, we’re screwed, nevermind…