Thaindian News

Lucknow, June 10 (IANS) In a sudden move, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president Mayawati Thursday dissolved all district and city units of the party, including the “bhaichara samitis” (social harmony committees) meant to promote her “social engineering”.
While senior party leaders were tight-lipped on the issue, insiders claimed that the move was a part of the exercise to revamp the party and prepare it for the 2012 state assembly elections from now itself.

Having announced earlier this week to keep her party out of all bye-elections in order to keep her partymen focused on the next assembly polls, Mayawati again told her supporters: “Your goal should now be 2012.”

Addressing a marathon meeting of party MPs, legislators and other important functionaries, including district coordinators, here, she sought to impress on them that a complete revamp of the state BSP was necessary.

“This move is aimed at reinforcing the party right down to the grassroots level,” she said.

The bhaichara samitis, formed before the 2007 state assembly polls, were believed to have accomplished their purpose of wooing a section of the upper castes into the ambit of the otherwise essentially Dalit-oriented BSP.

Mayawati also announced suspension of district level demonstrations to mark the BSP’s protest against what she termed the “step-motherly” treatment by the central government, as also against the “unprecedented price rise”.

“The demonstrations will remain suspended until Sep 1,” she said, indicating that the re-organisation of the district-level units would be completed by then.