Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Saturday claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was misusing national institutions such as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against political opponents to conduct a political witch-hunt during the Lok Sabha elections.
“This was, perhaps, for the first time post-Independence that a ruling party was using the ED and the CBI against opponents to influence the elections,” she said at a press conference at her Lucknow residence. “This makes it obvious that the BJP is not returning to power and that is why it has resorted to such means.”
Mayawati said that it was through media reports she had found out about the CBI inquiry in the sale of sugar mills during her tenure as Uttar Pradesh chief minister. The agency on Friday registered a case in the alleged sugar mills disinvestment scam.
“The issue has now been politicised by the BJP,” she said. “However, I never had any direct role in the sales of sugar mills, it was the Cabinet that took the decision.”
Mayawati claimed that a certain victory for the SP-BSP-RLD alliance in the state has “rattled” the BJP.
“But now the people of the country are alert, some are speaking openly against the BJP government while others are silent. The situation of the BJP is going from bad to worse after the three phases of the elections,” she said. “The trend will continue in the upcoming phases as people are fed up of the BJP, which is using religion and martyrs for political gains.”
Mayawati also attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his statements in which he claimed to belong to the "most-backward caste" community. She alleged that Modi had moved his caste to the list of the Other Backward Castes for "political gains".
“Narendra Modi is from the upper caste, but during his time as chief minister of Gujarat, he got his community enlisted under the OBC category for political gains,” she said.
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