Mayawati Demands Apology from Akhilesh Yadav Over Insult to Jat Community

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Saturday demanded that Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav apologise to the entire Jat community for his remarks against the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) and its leader, Union minister Jayant Chaudhary. In a post on X, she described Mr. Yadav's comment as “completely improper, indecent and highly shameful”.

Mr. Yadav had earlier said about his former ally, “We turned them from ‘chavani' (quarter) into a rupee.” Ms. Mayawati said this remark insulted not only the RLD and Mr. Chaudhary but also the family of former prime minister Chaudhary Charan Singh, who was a revered leader of the Jat community. Mr. Chaudhary is the grandson of Charan Singh, who served as Prime Minister from July 1979 to January 1980, and the son of former Union minister late Ajit Singh.

Ms. Mayawati further alleged that the SP has remained narrow-minded and marked by caste-based animosity, not only towards rival parties but also towards its allies. She claimed that the party's politics often benefited the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) electorally and weakened secular forces.

Recalling the 1993 SP-BSP alliance, Ms. Mayawati said it broke down because of the “arrogant” attitude of the SP, leading to the 1995 Lucknow state guest house incident. In June 1995, BSP leaders and workers were allegedly attacked by SP supporters after the alliance collapsed. Ms. Mayawati has previously alleged that there was a conspiracy to kill her during that incident.

She also referred to the 2019 Lok Sabha alliance between the SP and the BSP, saying it ended due to Mr. Yadav's “arrogant and self-serving attitude” after the alliance failed to produce the expected electoral results. Ms. Mayawati accused the SP of using alliances for its own political interests and changing its stance once its purpose was served.

Targeting the SP's PDA (Pichhda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak) formula, she alleged that Mr. Yadav changed the meaning of 'P' according to his political interests — sometimes projecting it as the voice of backward classes and at other times as representing the interests of Brahmins. She further alleged that previous SP governments failed to take positive steps for Dalits, backward classes, minorities and upper-caste communities, particularly Brahmins, and instead benefited “goons, criminals, mafias and other anarchic elements”.

Ms. Mayawati urged people across communities to remain cautious of what she described as the SP's “narrow and casteist politics”. She appealed to voters to ensure that the party does not return to power after next year's Assembly elections.

The remarks have stirred political debate in Uttar Pradesh, with the SP yet to respond formally. Mr. Chaudhary and the RLD have not issued any immediate reaction to Ms. Mayawati's statement.