India's Mayawati Quits After "Not Allowed to Speak on Atrocities Against Dalits"

A file photo of former UP chief minister Mayawati. | Photo: Reuters

The Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian Parliament, said Wednesday that it wants Mayawati Kumari, the Bahujan Samaj Party chief to withdraw her resignation that she filed Tuesday. Mayawati, an outspoken Indian female politician, who belongs to the "Dalit" community, one of India's most marginalized communities, is an icon to millions of Dalits. ['dalit' means 'oppressed' or 'broken and scattered' - the term most commonly is applied to the lowest Indian caste: the 'Untouchables' - prh, ed.]

The BSP chief claimed that she was muzzled during an ongoing session while trying to talk about the upsurge in Dalit atrocities in India, the most recent being an incident of caste-based violence in the north Indian town of Saharanpur, where two people were reportedly killed. The incident was fueled by apparent "fake news" over social media to create rifts between the upper and lower castes.

The deputy chairperson of the Indian parliament, PJ Kurien, had asked Mayawati to stop and not to "monopolize" the discussion as she went on to describe the issues faced by Dalits beyond her allotted time of 3 minutes to speak at the ongoing house session.

Mayawati then warned that she would abandon her seat as she was "not allowed to speak on atrocities against Dalits," the Hindu reported.

Kurien, later, described the episode as "misunderstanding" adding that he has "utmost respect" for the BSP leader who has been the chief minister of the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, UP, for four terms.

"None of us are happy about her resigning. I have utmost respect for her. It was just a misunderstanding. We all have a lot of respect for her and regard her as a senior leader. The House will ask her to reconsider her decision," Kurien said, according to the First Post.

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