‘Not an authorised delegation’: Congress issues show-cause notices after its Dalit leaders visit Mayawati’s house | India News
New Delhi: Several Congress Dalit leaders tried to meet Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati at her Lucknow residence on Wednesday requested the grand old party to issue a show-cause notice to them seeking an explanation for their “unauthorised” actions.The leaders were turned away at the gate as they did not seek an appointment to meet the former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, who belongs to the Dalit community.Rajendra Pal Gautam, national chairman of the Congress’ Scheduled Castes division, and Tanuj Punia, the division’s Uttar Pradesh president and MP, were among those who visited Mayawati’s residence, describing the visit as an “immediate courtesy call” without “any political push”.Congress Uttar Pradesh in-charge Avinash Pandey told PTI that the party has taken note of the visit.“It was not an authorized delegation from the party. We have considered the matter and issued a show cause notice. Though we hold him in high regard, those who tried to meet him did so in their personal capacity,” Pandey said.Meanwhile, state Congress president Ajay Rai maintained that the party had not given any permission for any such meeting.“Such programs are pre-determined and cleared by the top leadership,” Rai said.‘Not true’: Congress MP Punia denies reports that Dalit leaders wanted to convey Rahul Gandhi’s messagePunia denied reports claiming that Dalit leaders approached Mayawati to convey a message from Rahul Gandhi.“This is not correct…a meeting of the party’s SC wing under Rajendra Pal ji was held in Lucknow on Tuesday evening. Since our party office is near the BSP chief’s residence, after the meeting, as we passed Mayawati ji’s residence, we thought of an impromptu courtesy call on her, more so as she also told a senior PTI leader and a senior leader of our community.”BSP spokesperson Biswanath Pal said he had no knowledge about the visit. “I don’t know who visited Behn G. I am not aware of any such visit,” he said, referring to Mayawati.Not minding the controversy, Gautam maintained that the visit was “well thought out” and had no political intention, adding that it was to check on the BSP leader’s health.“It may be a juicy gossip for the media, but for me, I have known Mayawati’s relatives for a long time. Her brother is well known to me and we meet often. That’s why, after our Lucknow meeting, when we were passing through her residence, we decided to check if she is available for the meeting,” said Gautam.When asked if a formal appointment should have been made, he replied that it was not considered necessary as he was familiar with the family.
