Akhilesh and Mulayam are BJP agents, alleges Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar

Bhim Army founder Chandrashekhar Azad alleged on Wednesday that Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and his father Mulayam Singh Yadav were “agents” of the BJP, and said he would drop his plan to contest from Varanasi if his candidature hurt the Dalit movement.

Hitting back at Mayawati

Chandrashekhar spoke at a public meeting in Jaipur, days after BSP chief Mayawati called him a BJP agent and claimed his Varanasi bid was part of a BJP plot to divide the Dalit vote. Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party is in alliance with the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh against the BJP.

He accused Akhilesh Yadav of promoting officers responsible for atrocities against Dalits, and said Mulayam Singh Yadav had told Parliament he wanted Modi to become Prime Minister again. Rejecting the label put on him, he said he was a follower of B R Ambedkar. He also claimed that Mayawati was being misled by Satish Chandra Mishra, the BSP general secretary and the party’s Brahmin face.

He said he would not contest from Varanasi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s constituency, if his candidature strengthened Modi in any way.

Mayawati’s charge

In a tweet on Sunday, Mayawati had said the BJP tried hard to plant Chandrashekhar inside the BSP but failed. She called for the BJP to be removed from power in the national interest and urged voters not to waste their votes.

Background

At a rally in the national capital the previous month, Chandrashekhar had announced that he would take on Modi in Varanasi, welcoming support from all parties, including the Congress, and seeking backing from the SP and BSP. The SP-BSP-RLD alliance had not yet named its Varanasi candidate.

The Bhim Army came to prominence during clashes between Dalits and upper-caste Thakurs in Saharanpur in May 2017. Chandrashekhar was arrested afterwards. Although the Allahabad High Court granted him bail, the Uttar Pradesh Police detained him under the National Security Act. He was freed in September 2018 after 16 months in jail.

What happened next

In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, counted on 23 May 2019, the BJP won 303 of the 543 seats, and Narendra Modi was sworn in for a second term on 30 May 2019.

Originally published on 3 April 2019. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

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