Dalits will vote for Congress,Priyanka wants me to play a bigger role in politics,says Dalit MP Savitri Phule

Congress general secretary for eastern Uttar Pradesh, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra wants me to play a bigger role in politics, says former BJP Dalit MP Savitri Phule, who recently joined Congress.

Emphasising that Congress is the only party which can defeat BJP or put a challenge before the saffron party at a national level, Phule told National Herald over the phone from Bharaich that “she is touched by the humility of Congress president Rahul Gandhi and United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi.”

“Apart from Priyanka, I met Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi at the time of joining Congress. The respect they showed me is rare,” said the Bharaich MP, as she drew a contrast between the personalities of PM Modi and members of the Gandhi family. She said Modi often talks about his poor background, but he appears drunk on power.

Castigating her erstwhile party BJP and PM for compromising the national security, Phule demanded an independent investigation into the Pulwama terror attack, in which at least 40 CRPF personnel lost their lives.

When asked about her resentments against the BJP that prompted her to leave the saffron party, Phule replied, “I was upset with the anti-Dalit, anti-backward and anti-Muslim ideology of the saffron party.”

“On one hand, the PM praised Ambedkar Saheb just for getting votes, while on the other hand, many statues of Ambedkar were demolished or vandalised in many parts of the country. Copies of the Constitution were burnt down at Jantar Mantar. But, no one in the government ever tried to take any action against the people who did this,” she complained.

Unveiling her plans for the Congress, Phule said her primary task is to bring back the Dalits and Muslim vote to the Congress fold, which she believes has drifted to other parties over the last few years.

Reclaiming her faith “on the wisdom of common man”, the fire brand Dalit leader said, “Dalits, OBC, Muslims have now realised that it is only Congress which does not only talk about the inclusiveness and Constitutionalism, but has also been following these principles in letter and spirit.

“Only Congress can defend the Constitution drafted by Baba Saheb Ambedkar,” noted Phule.

“Our immediate goal is to defeat the BJP in Lok Sabha polls and win maximum seats for the party, but we are also working on Mission 2022,” she said, referring to the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh in 2022.

“After 2022 assembly election, Congress will form the government in Uttar Pradesh,” said Phule.

On her not joining the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Phule explained, “Results of recently held assembly elections in three big states – MP, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh – show Dalits, backwards and Muslims voted for Congress. You will see a repetition of the pattern in the Lok Sabha election. Dalits, OBC and Muslim will vote for Congress in coming Lok Sabha polls.”

In reference to the BSP, Phule said a political party which claims to be a party of Bahujan Samaj, is working like the “B-team” of the BJP.

“Immediately after the demise of Kanshi Ram, the party went on the wrong track,” she said. However, hinting towards the possibility of tacit understanding between Congress and the SP-BSP alliance in coming election, she said the purpose is to defeat the BJP in Lok Sabha elections.

To achieve this, “all smaller parties should support Congress,” said Phule.