Chandrasekhar was carrying a reward of Rs 12,000 on his head.
The insensitivity of the Uttar Pradesh police on Friday came to the fore, as a senior police officer was caught on camera humiliating a 35-year-old Dalit woman, who had approached him for lodging a rape case, saying, "Who would rape an elderly woman who is a mother of four".
At a time when the Congress is considering an electoral understanding with the BSP in the 2014 polls, Rahul Gandhi's critical remarks about Mayawati has left party leaders confused. Anita Katyal reports
Bahujan Samaj Party supremo and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati on Tuesday challenged the new chief minister Akhilesh Yadav's diktat, changing the names of each of the eight districts carved out by her as well as that of two institutions named after Dalit icons in the state.
'You are one of the drops that make that ocean, but when you leave it makes no difference to the ocean.'
"Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi trust our words and reports. Why don't senior BJP leaders like Amit Shah or Dharmendra Pradhan visit Baran or anywhere in the state to know what actually is the ground reality," Gehlot told PTI.
The Lucknow bench of the high court also directed the state government to lay down modalities for cremation in Hathras-like situations. Considering the sensitivity of the issue, the court directed UP officials, political parties and all others to avoid making any statement in public on it.
'The Bharat Jodo Yatra has done very well in the south, and if they are able to pull voters in the south and rely on their allies in the north like in Bihar, UP and do well in Rajasthan, then there are chances that there might be a formidable opposition or at least a force to fight the BJP.'
Having reclaimed power in Uttar Pradesh after 15 years, the Bharatiya Janata Party will now turn its focus to the states where it has been traditionally weak but which are critical to determine its fortune in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls as its national executive meet begins in Odisha on Saturday.
A day after violent communal clash and arson rocked Asthan village in the Pratapgarh district of Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav ordered the suspension of both the district magistrate and superintendent of police.
BSP supremo Mayawati may have used her plan to nominate a Dalit candidate for the post of President as a bargaining tool with the Congress, reports Sheela Bhatt.
Accusing opposition parties of anti-dalit mentality, ruling Bahujan Samaj Party in Uttar Pradesh today claimed that its president Mayawati's statues were installed as per the "written will" of party founder Kanshiram.
The nominations were made by President Ram Nath Kovind on the advice of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the PMO said.
A lacklustre show by the Congress in Bihar seems to have proved costly for the opposition grand alliance, as it dragged down the RJD too from government formation in the Hindi heartland state.
'UP has shown India and the world how caste and religion can be manipulated to the maximum cynical extent.'
In a major relief to former Uttar Pradesh minister Anand Sen Yadav, the Allahabad high court on Monday set aside a district court's order, which had sentenced him to life imprisonment in a case of abduction and murder of a Dalit girl.
In an affidavit filed in response to a PIL, which has been listed for hearing before a bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde, the state government said it is important that the investigation is carried out by an independent central agency.
Smaller caste-based political parties, which are considered as potential spoilers, have failed to make a strong impact on political equations in Uttar Pradesh.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi wants Congressmen to concentrate on the reserved constituencies of Uttar pradesh and on the area where Muslim votes make a crucial difference. He has formed teams to send all the Dalit constituencies, and this exercise is being called 'Mission 85'. Sheela Bhatt reports.
Reacting to Mayawati's objection over the absence of any Dalit on the Jan Lokpal Bill draft committee, Agnivesh said, "I do welcome her objection and thank her for raising the issue. But I would also like to ask the UP chief minister to declare whether she had taken any effective steps to curb the rampant corruption in her government.
The Bahujan Samaj Party on Thursday claimed that Election Commission decision of covering statues of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati and party symbol elephant is one-sided and unjustified and was a violation of Article 14 of the constitution.
The Election Commission on Saturday night transferred Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police Brij Lal and Principal Secretary (Home) Kunwar Fateh Bahadur after major opposition parties accused the two officials of working as "agents" of the ruling Bahujan Samaj Party. BSP slammed the EC's decision, claiming the removal of Lal and Bahadur would "shatter the sense of security among Dalits and the downtrodden that they would be able to exercise their franchise in a free manner
Yadav also promised caste census in the state after the formation of the SP government and equal representation and honour to all castes.
After her attempts attract Brahmins and Dalits, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Bahujan Samaj Party president Mayawati is now all set to woo Muslims, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas.
People, carrying "Not In My Name" placards and forming human chains, protested across Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Goa and Kerala.
The Criminal Investigation Department of the Uttar Pradesh government on Thursday filed a chargesheet against Bahujan Samaj Party member of Legislative Assembly Purshottam Naresh Dwivedi for allegedly raping a 17-year-old Dalit girl.
Bahujan Samaj Party president Mayawati's fad for building memorials and parks with umpteen statues of Dalit icons and elephants, the party symbol, has a dark side too. Clearly, there appears to be a huge scam behind every dream project of the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister.
'The BJP has been tinkering with the Indian Constitution every now and then.' 'Instead of celebrating November 26 as Constitution Day, the BJP was more interested in (the VHP's) Dharam Sabha which was called that day.' 'This shows they believe more in the Ram mandir than in the Constitution.'
BSP chief says Ambedkar talked of separate electorates for Dalits; didn't believe in Hindutva.
Three minor girls, including a Dalit, were allegedly raped in separate incidents in different districts of Uttar Pradesh, police said on Wednesday.
Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati may have lost the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh but the defeated chief minister's wealth as declared has jumped to Rs 111 crore, a 25 per cent increase in the last two years.
Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati may be on her way out of 'pancham tal' -- the Chief Minister's Office in the secretariat building -- but she has the distinction of being the first chief minister of Uttar Pradesh to have completed a full five-year term in the post.
'Every Congress leader in UP and the rest of India is calling me and thanking me that finally someone spoke about this JNU gang ruling the Congress party in UP.'
Sources later said differences between the two parties have been resolved.
Religious minorities in India have been subjected to "violent attacks, forced conversions" and 'Ghar Wapsi' campaigns by groups like the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh after the Modi government assumed power in 2014, a US Congress-established panel has said.
Claiming that the BJP's government's works in the three holy cities are only follow-ups of her government's initiatives, Mayawati went on to promise, in what is being seen as a subtle shift towards soft Hindutva ahead of the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls, to complete all those work on time.
It is unusual in democratic countries two decades into the 21st century for laws to become regressive instead of progressive. But that is clearly what is happening in India today and more of this is ahead, asserts Aakar Patel.
The brother of the 19-year-old Dalit woman told reporters on Saturday that the family wanted to shift to the national capital and continue their fight for justice there.
He was billed as the next big thing in Dalit politics in Uttar Pradesh and a challenge for the Bahujan Samaj Party but Mayawati's party is least impressed by the exploits of Chandrasekhar Azad 'Ravan' let alone consider him a threat.
