Mayawati (Hindi: मायावती, About this sound pronunciation (help·info)) (full name: Mayawati Kumari,[1] born 15 January 1956) is an Indian politician who served four terms as Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh (UP) as head of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which focuses on a platform of social change to improve the welfare of the weakest strata of Indian society—the Bahujans or Dalits, Other Backward Classes, and religious minorities. She was Chief Minister briefly in 1995 and again in 1997, then from 2002 to 2003 and from 2007 to 2012. Mayawati's rise from humble beginnings has been called a "miracle of democracy" by P. V. Narasimha Rao, former Prime Minister of India.[2] In 1993 Mayawati formed a coalition with the Samajwadi Party and became the youngest Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh at that time. She was the first female Dalit Chief Minister in India. In 1997 and in 2002 she was Chief Minister in coalition with the Bharatiya Janata Party, the second time for a full term. Mayawati's tenure has attracted praise and controversy. Millions of Dalits view her as an icon, and refer to her as Behen-ji (sister). She has been praised for her fundraising efforts on behalf of her party and her birthdays have become major media events and a symbol for her supporters. The rise in her personal wealth and that of her party have been criticised as indicative of corruption. After losing the 2012 legislative assembly elections to the rival Samajwadi Party, she resigned from her post as party leader on 7 March 2012. Later that month she was elected by acclamation to a seat in the Rajya Sabha (upper house of Parliament). Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state and one of its poorest, is considered pivotal in the politics of India because of its large number of voters.[19][20] BSP won a majority in the 2007 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, fielding candidates from a variety of castes and religions.[21] The campaign was accompanied by a colourful slogan: Haathi nahin, Ganesh hain, Brahma, Vishnu Mahesh Hain: "The elephant (the BSP logo) is really the Lord Ganesha, the trinity of gods rolled into one".[22] The new slogan invited everyone, including the higher castes, to "come ride the elephant", her party's election symbol.[12] Mayawati was sworn in as Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh for the fourth time on 13 May 2007. She announced an agenda that focused on providing social justice to the weaker sections of society and providing employment instead of distributing money to the unemployed. Her slogan was to make "Uttar Pradesh" ("Northern Province") into "Uttam Pradesh" ("Excellent Province").[23] Her government began a major crackdown on irregularities in the recruitment process of police officers recruited during the previous Mulayam Singh government. Over 18,000 policemen lost their jobs for irregularities in their hiring, and 25 Indian Police Service officers were suspended for their involvement in corruption while recruiting the constables.[24][25] Mayawati instituted reforms to introduce transparency into the recruiting process, including posting the results of selection exams online.[26] The BSP won 20 seats in Lok Sabha from the state of Uttar Pradesh in the 2009 elections, obtaining the highest percentage (27.42%) of votes for any political party in the state. The party placed third in terms of national polling percentage (6.17%).[27] On 6 March 2012 the Bahujan Samaj Party lost its majority to the Samajwadi Party and Mayawati tendered her resignation to the governor of Uttar Pradesh the next day.[28] On 13 March 2012 she filed nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha, and she was declared elected unopposed on 22 March.[29][30] On 15 November 2011, Mayawati's cabinet approved partitioning Uttar Pradesh into four different states for better administration and governance.[31] Mayawati has seen through to completion several of her dream projects, including the Manvyar Shri Kanshi Ramji Green (Eco) Garden (inaugurated March 2011),[32] the Rashtriya Dalit Prerna Sthal and Green Garden (inaugurated October 2011),[33] and the Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Samajik Parivartan Prateek Sthal (opened November 2012).[34] Political and legal issues Mayawati's political career has attracted praise and controversy.[35][36] She has been praised for her fundraising efforts on behalf of her party and her birthdays have become major media events as well as a symbol for her supporters. The increase in her personal wealth and that of her party[37][38][39] have been viewed by critics as signs of corruption.[12][40]

• published: 31 Jul 2014
• views: 659