|
Mayawati in Newsweek's list of
top 8 global power women
WSN Network
New York: Uttar Pradesh’s chief minister Mayawati has been profiled
by US magazine Newsweek among eight women leaders worldwide who have
reached the top despite all odds, with the Dalit leader narrating
her struggle to rally the oppressed community.
Writing in the magazine, the 51-year-old Bahujan Samaj Party chief,
who swept the Assembly elections early this year with a rainbow
coalition of Dalits, upper castes and Muslims, says her aim is to
replicate the victory in the other states and prepare for a bigger
struggle to capture power in New Delhi. Mayawati says her party
initially needed an aggressive approach to rally the poor Dalits.
‘‘Political parties dominated by upper castes got alarmed by the
rising masses.
‘‘Their opposition cut short each of my first four stints as chief
minister of UP and it became clear we needed to broaden the base to
include the poor irrespective of caste or religion,’’ she says.
So, Mayawati says, she organised village-level amity meetings for
the poor irrespective of caste or religion. ‘‘Our efforts were met
with calumny, attacks and lawsuits, but we struggled on, and
prevailed in elections this May. For the first time in 17 years, a
majority government led by a Dalit is in place in UP,’’ she adds..
17
October, 2007
|
Read More