Kumari Mayawati (born 15 January 1956) is an Indian politician. She has served four separate terms as Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. She is the national president of the

Bahujan Samaj Party The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) is a national level political party in India that was formed to represent Bahujans (literally means "community in majority"), referring to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes (OBC), a ...

(BSP), which focuses on a platform of social change for ''Bahujans'', more commonly known as

Other Backward Castes The Other Backward Class is a collective term used by the Government of India to classify castes which are educationally or socially backward. It is one of several official classifications of the population of India, along with General castes, S ...

Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...

as well as converted minorities from these castes. She was chief minister briefly in 1995 and again in 1997, then from 2002 to 2003 and from 2007 to 2012. Mayawati's rise from humble beginnings has been called a "miracle of democracy" by

P. V. Narasimha Rao Pamulaparthi Venkata Narasimha Rao (28 June 1921 – 23 December 2004) was an Indian lawyer, statesman and politician who served as the 9th prime minister of India from 1991 to 1996. He is known for introducing various liberal reforms to Indi ...

, former

prime minister of India The prime minister of India ( IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of th ...

. In 1993

Kanshi Ram Kanshi Ram (15 March 1934 – 9 October 2006), also known as Bahujan Nayak or Manyavar or Saheb, was an Indian politician and social reformer who worked for the upliftment and political mobilisation of the Bahujans, the backward or lower caste ...

formed a coalition with the

Samajwadi Party The Samajwadi Party ( SP; translation: ''Socialist Party'', founded 4 October 1992) is a socialist political party in India, headquartered in New Delhi but mainly based in Uttar Pradesh, with significant presence in other states as well. With ...

and Mayawati became the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh in 1995. She was the first female Scheduled Caste chief minister in India. In 1997 and in 2002 she was chief minister with outside support from the

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major List of political parties in India, Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the List of ruling p ...

(BJP), the second time only for a year up to 26 August 2003 due to BJP withdrawing support. Mayawati's tenure has attracted praise and criticism. Millions of

Dalit Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming a ...

s across India view her as an icon, and refer to her as ''Behen-ji'' (elder sister). She has been praised for her fundraising efforts on behalf of her party and her birthdays have been widely celebrated by her supporters. The rise in her personal wealth and that of her party have been criticised as indicative of corruption. After losing the 2012 legislative assembly elections to

Akhilesh Yadav Akhilesh is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Akhilesh Das (1961–2017), educationist, professor, Indian politician and philanthropist *Akhilesh K. Gaharwar (born 1982), Indian academic and Professor at Texas A&M University *Akh ...

, she resigned from her post on 7 March 2012. Later that month, she was elected to the

Rajya Sabha The Rajya Sabha, wikisource:Constitution of India/Part V#Article 80, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. , it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legisl ...

, the upper house of

Indian parliament The Parliament of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the president of India and two houses: the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the ...

Early life and education

Mayawati was born on 15 January 1956 at Shrimati Sucheta Kriplani Hospital,

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the NCT Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati B ...

into a

family of

Jatav Jatav, also known as Jatava/ Jatan/ Jatua/ Jatia, is an Indian social group that are considered to be a part of the Chamar caste, (now often termed Dalit), who are classified as a Scheduled Caste under modern India's system of positive discr ...

caste. Her father Prabhu Das, was a post office employee at Badalpur village, near

Dadri Dadri is a town and a municipal board in Gautam Buddha Nagar District in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Dadri Railway Station is a complex yard in North Central Railway spread over six kilometers on busiest route of Delhi–Kanpur–Pa ...

Gautam Buddha Nagar Gautam Buddha Nagar district is a district of Uttar Pradesh, named after Gautama Buddha. It is a part of Delhi NCR and is divided into 4 sub-divisions i.e. Noida, Greater Noida, Dadri and Jewar. Greater Noida is the administrative headquarters ...

. The sons in the family were sent to private schools, while the daughters went to "low-performing government schools". Mayawati studied for her B.A. in 1975 at the

Kalindi College Kalindi College ( hi, कालिंदी कॉलेज) is located East Patel Nagar, New Delhi. The college is affiliated to University of Delhi. History The college had a beginning as ‘Government College Devnagar’; within a year the c ...

University of Delhi Delhi University (DU), formally the University of Delhi, is a collegiate central university located in New Delhi, India. It was founded in 1922 by an Act of the Central Legislative Assembly and is recognized as an Institute of Eminence (IoE ...

and obtained her

LL.B. Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

from the prestigious

Faculty of Law, University of Delhi The Faculty of Law, University of Delhi is the law department of the University of Delhi. It has the unique distinction of producing the largest number of sitting judges of the Supreme Court of India. It is situated in the north campus of the ...

in 1983. She completed a

B.Ed. A Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) is an undergraduate professional degree which prepares students for work as a teacher in schools. In some countries such as Tanzania and Kenya, additional tasks like field work and research are required in order fo ...

from

Meerut University Chaudhary Charan Singh University (CCS University), formerly Meerut University, is a public state university located in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India. The university was established in 1965. It was later renamed to its current name after Chaudh ...

's VMLG College,

Ghaziabad Ghaziabad () is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and a part of Delhi NCR. It is the administrative headquarters of Ghaziabad district and is the largest city in western Uttar Pradesh, with a population of 1,729,000. Ghaziabad Muni ...

, in 1976. She was working as a teacher in Inderpuri JJ Colony, Delhi, and studying for the

Indian Administrative Services The Indian Administrative Service (IAS) is the administrative arm of the All India Services of Government of India. Considered the premier civil service of India, the IAS is one of the three arms of the All India Services along with the Ind ...

exams, when

and Other backward castes politician

visited her family home in 1977. According to biographer

Ajoy Bose Ajoy Bose (born 1952) is a Bengali-Indian author, political journalist and television commentator. His books include ''For Reasons of State: Delhi under Emergency'' (1977, written with John Dayal) on the Emergency; ''The Shah Commission Begins ...

, Ram told her: "I can make you such a big leader one day that not one but a whole row of IAS officers will line up for your orders." Kanshi Ram included her as a member of his team when he founded the

(BSP) in 1984. Mayawati was first elected to

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. ...

in 1989.

Early political career

Kanshi Ram founded the BSP in 1984. Influenced by

B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served a ...

, the chief architect of the

Constitution of India The Constitution of India (IAST: ) is the supreme law of India. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental ...

, the party's primary focus is to improve the situation of

and other disadvantaged groups through policy reform, affirmative action on hiring of members of scheduled castes for government posts, and providing rural development programmes.

Reservation in India Reservation is a system of affirmative action in India that provides historically disadvantaged groups representation in education, employment, government schemes, scholarships and politics. Based on provisions in the Indian Constitution, it ...

is a system whereby a percentage of government positions and seats at universities are reserved for persons of backward classes and scheduled castes and tribes. Throughout her political career, Mayawati supported reservation in both government and private sectors for backward classes, with an increase in quotas and inclusion of more communities such as religious minorities and economically weak upper castes. In August 2012 a bill was cleared that starts the process of amending the constitution so that the reservation system can be expanded to promotions in state jobs. Mayawati's career has been called a "miracle of democracy" by former Prime Minister of India

. Millions of Dalit supporters view her as an icon and refer to her as "Behen-ji" (sister). Her public meetings have been attended by large audiences, who use slogans such as ''"Kanshi Ram ka mission Adhoora; karegi Behen Mayawati poora"'' (Kanshi Ram's unfulfilled mission will be completed by Mayawati) and ''"Behenji tum sangharsh karo; hum tumhare saath hain"'' (Sister, go ahead with your struggle; we are with you). In its first election campaign in 1984, BSP fielded Mayawati for the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-pas ...

(Lower House) seat of

Kairana Kairana is a city and a municipal board in Shamli district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is approximately from Shamli city. Demographics As of 2011 Indian Census, Kairana had a total population of 89,000, of which 47,047 were male ...

in the

Muzaffarnagar district Muzaffarnagar district is a district of Uttar Pradesh state in northern India. It is part of Saharanpur division. The city of Muzaffarnagar is the district headquarters. This district is the part of National Capital Region. History Medieva ...

, for

Bijnor Bijnor is a city and a municipal board in Bijnor district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India Haridwar Haridwar (; ) is a city and municipal corporation in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, India. With a population of 228,832 in 2011, it is the second-largest city in the state and the largest in the district. The city is situated on the ri ...

in 1987. In 1989 she was elected as the representative for

Bijnor Bijnor is a city and a municipal board in Bijnor district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India Although BSP did not win control of the house, the electoral experience led to considerable activity for Mayawati over the next five years, as she worked with Mahsood Ahmed and other organisers. The party won three seats in the 1989 national election and two seats 1991. Mayawati was first elected to the

(Upper House) of

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

(UP) in 1994. In 1995 she became, as head of her party,

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

in a short-lived coalition government, the youngest

in the history of the state up until that point, and the first female Dalit Chief Minister in India. She won election to the Lok Sabha in two different constituencies in 1996 and chose to serve for Harora. She became Chief Minister again for a short period in 1997 and then from 2002 to 2003 in coalition with the

. In 2001 Ram named her as his successor to the party leadership.

BSP presidentship

On 15 December 2001, in an address during a rally in Lucknow,

named Mayawati as his successor. She was elected national president of the BSP for her first term on 18 September 2003. She was elected unopposed for a second consecutive term on 27 August 2006, for a third term on 30 August 2014 and for fourth term on 28 August 2019.

Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh

As the

, Mayawati gained a reputation for efficient governance and promoting law and order, winning praise even from opposition parties and other rivals. In 2007, MP Umakant Yadav of her own political party, accused in a land grabbing case, was arrested near her dwelling on her orders. During September–October 2010, at the time of the Ayodhya verdict, her government maintained law and order and the state remained peaceful. Several high-profile criminals and mafia dons were jailed during her terms in office. She called for strong anti-rape laws. Fewer riots, lowest rapes, and least corruption occurred during her tenure as compared to previous or successive governments. In the 2007-2012 assembly, only 124 MLAs were

crorepati Crorepati is a Hindi word for a person who has assets worth one crore A crore (; abbreviated cr) denotes ten million (10,000,000 or 107 in scientific notation) and is equal to 100 lakh in the Indian numbering system. It is written as 1,00,00 ...

s as compared to 271 crorepatis in successive assembly elected in 2012. Uttar Pradesh achieved higher

GDP Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is of ...

growth rate at 17 per cent and lesser

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Ca ...

s under Mayawati regime as compared to previous and successive governments.

First term, 1995

Mayawati first served as Chief Minister from 3 June 1995 to 18 October 1995 with support of BJP. During this term, the new districts of

Ambedkar Nagar district Ambedkar Nagar is a district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. This district is a part of Faizabad division (officially ''Ayodhya division'') in the Awadh region of the state. This district was established on 29 September 1995 by carvin ...

and

Udham Singh Nagar district Udham Singh Nagar District (officially District of Udham Singh Nagar )is a district of Uttarakhand state in northern India. Rudrapur is the district headquarters. This district consists of nine Tehsils named Bajpur, Gadarpur, Rudrapur, Jas ...

were created.

Second term, 1997

Her second term was from 21 March 1997 to 20 September 1997. A drive under her government allotted ''pattas'' or gram sabha lands on lease to thousands of landless residents. In April 1997, she created

Gautam Budh Nagar district Gautam Buddha Nagar district is a district of Uttar Pradesh, named after Gautama Buddha. It is a part of Delhi NCR and is divided into 4 sub-divisions i.e. Noida, Greater Noida, Dadri and Jewar. Greater Noida is the administrative headquarters ...

from the district of Ghaziabad,

Kaushambi district Kaushambi district is a district in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. Manjhanpur is the district headquarters. The district was carved from Allahabad district on 4 April 1997. Manauri bajar connects Allahabad and Kaushambi districts by railwa ...

was separated from Allahabad district, and

Jyotiba Phule Nagar district Amroha district is one of the 75 districts of Uttar Pradesh state in northern India. Amroha town is the district headquarters. According to the Government of India, the district is one of the Minority Concentrated Districts on the basis of t ...

from

Moradabad district Moradabad district is one of the Districts of Uttar Pradesh, districts of Uttar Pradesh, India. Moradabad is the district headquarters. Moradabad district is a part of Moradabad division. It is used to be the second most populous district of Utt ...

. In May 1997, Mahamaya Nagar district was created out of Aligarh district and Banda district was split into Banda and Chatrapati Shahuji Maharaj Nagar. Mayawati carried out review meetings with bureaucrats and suspended 127 officers. She setup Dr Ambedkar Awards and erected over 100 statues of various sizes of Ambedkar in Lucknow, Kanpur, Allahabad and other key towns.

Third term, 2002–03

Her third term was from 3 May 2002 to 26 August 2003. She suspended 12 IAS officers, including Divisional Commissioners and District Magistrates. Six IPS officers were suspended for failing to maintain law and order, while 24 officers were warned to improve. She started 511 acre

Gautam Buddha University Gautam Buddha University ("GBU") ( hi, गौतम बुद्ध विश्वविद्यालय) is a university established by the Uttar Pradesh Gautam Buddha University Act 2002 (UP Act No. 9 of 2002) and came into existence in 2 ...

. She renamed King George's Medical University to Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj Medical University. She suspended three senior officials after review in a couple of administrative divisions.

2007 State and 2009 general election

, India's most populous state and one of its poorest, is considered pivotal in the politics of India because of its large number of voters. BSP won a majority in the

2007 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections The 2007 Uttar Pradesh legislative assembly election was held during April–May 2007. It was held to elect a government for the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. Background With 166 million people, U.P. is about the size of France, Germany, an ...

, due to support of Brahmans. The campaign was accompanied by a colourful slogan: ''Haathi nahin,

Ganesh Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu ...

hain,

Brahma Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp ...

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within ...

, Mahesh Hain'': "The elephant (the BSP logo) is really the Lord Ganesha, the trinity of gods rolled into one". 37 percent Brahmins voted for the party. The BSP won 20 seats in

from the state of Uttar Pradesh in the

2009 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2009. * Electoral calendar 2009 * 2009 United Nations Security Council election Caribbean * 2009 Antiguan general election * 2009 Aruban general election * 2009 Caymanian constitutional referendum * ...

, obtaining the highest percentage (27.42%) of votes for any political party in the state. The party placed third in terms of national polling percentage (6.17%).

Fourth term, 2007–12: BSP absolute majority

Mayawati was sworn in as Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh for the fourth time on 13 May 2007. She announced an agenda that focused on providing social justice to the weaker sections of society and providing employment instead of distributing money to the unemployed. Her slogan was to make "Uttar Pradesh" ("Northern Province") into "Uttam Pradesh" ("Excellent Province"). Her government began a major crackdown on irregularities in the recruitment process of police officers recruited during the previous Mulayam Singh government. Over 18,000 policemen lost their jobs for irregularities in their hiring, and 25

Indian Police Service The Indian Police Service ( IPS) is a civil service under the All India Services. It replaced the Indian Imperial Police in 1948, a year after India became Partition of India, independent from the British Raj. Along with the Indian Administ ...

officers were suspended for their involvement in corruption while recruiting the constables. Mayawati instituted reforms to introduce transparency into the recruiting process, including posting the results of selection exams online. On 10 August 2007, the Mayawati government proposed 30 per cent reservation in jobs in the private sector. A quota for promotions was also introduced, but was later quashed by the

Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India (IAST: ) is the supreme judicial authority of India and is the highest court of the Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, has the final decision in all legal matters ...

. In September 2007, Bhimrao Ambedkar Rural Integrated Development Programme was started. The Dr Ambedkar Gram Vikas Yojana scheme was launched for supplying water, electricity, and constructing roads in villages with a Dalit majority. Under this scheme, 24,716 villages received improvements. In 2008, Mayawati launched, ''Manyawar Shri Kanshiram Ji Shahri Garib Awas Yojna'', a scheme for building low-cost housing colonies for urban poor with 90,000 low-cost homes under the first round of construction in different towns and cities across the state while a second and a third round were still underway when government ended in 2012 and next government scrapped the scheme including cutting down electricity of these colonies. Mayawati government started efforts to set up solar power plants and the first 5 MW solar power plant located in

Naini Naini (also known as Naini Industrial Area) is a satellite neighborhood and a twin city of Prayagraj in Prayagraj district, Uttar Pradesh, India. By the 1950s Naini was established as the chief industrial area of the city. History Naini had a ...

Allahabad district Allahabad district, officially known as Prayagraj district, is the most populous district of Uttar Pradesh state of India. The district headquarters is Allahabad which was renamed Prayagraj at the same time as the district was renamed. The Di ...

started functioning in March 2012 and was developed by EMC Limited. UP government signed a MoU with

NTPC Limited NTPC Limited, formerly known as National Thermal Power Corporation Limited, is an Indian central public sector undertaking under the ownership of the Ministry of Power, Government of India which is engaged in generation of electricity and ...

for 1,320-MW power plant. Mayawati's dream project of 165 km six lane

Yamuna Expressway Yamuna Expressway is a 6-lane wide (expandable to 8) and 165.5 km long access-controlled expressway in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is presently India's 3rd longest expressway since February 2017. It was built to de-congest the olde ...

connected Delhi to Agra through

Noida–Greater Noida Expressway The Noida–Greater Noida Expressway is a six-lane highway connecting Noida, Uttar Pradesh, an industrial suburb of Delhi to Greater Noida, a new suburb. This expressway is under expansion to Taj Economic Zone, International Airport and Av ...

, touching 1,182 villages in the state. Later,

Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its complement of personnel and aircraft assets ranks third amongst the air forces of the world. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial w ...

fighter jet

Dassault Mirage 2000 The Dassault Mirage 2000 is a French multirole, single-engine, fourth-generation jet fighter manufactured by Dassault Aviation. It was designed in the late 1970s as a lightweight fighter to replace the Mirage III for the French Air Force (''Arm ...

test-Landed on Yamuna Expressway as Part of Trials. On 15 January 2008, Mayawati inaugurated the construction of the 1,047 km

Ganga Expressway Ganga Expressway is an under-construction 594 km long, 6-lane wide (expandable to 8) greenfield expressway in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Phase-1 will connect Bijauli village on NH-334 in Meerut district with Judapur Dandu village on ...

at the cost of for joining

Ballia Ballia is a city with a municipal board in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The eastern boundary of the city lies at the junction of two major rivers, the Ganges and the Ghaghara.The city is situated east of Varanasi and about 380 km f ...

to Greater Noida. In 2008, Her government established Dr. Shakuntala Misra National Rehabilitation University for the Physically challenged students. In November 2009, Mayawati dedicated

Noida Metro The Noida Metro is a rapid transit system connecting the twin cities of Noida and Greater Noida in Gautam Buddh Nagar, Uttar Pradesh, India. The metro network consists of one line (called Aqua Line), with a total length of serving 21 stati ...

constructed at the cost of . She had vigorously proposed for construction of Jewar airport near

Noida Noida, short for New Okhla Industrial Development Authority, is a planned city located in Gautam Buddha Nagar district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Noida is a satellite city of Delhi and is a part of the National Capital Region (India) ...

. In October 2011, Mayawati government under public-private partnership with

Jaypee Group Jaiprakash Associates Limited, commonly known as Jaypee Group, is an Indian conglomerate company based in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. It has business interests in engineering, construction, power, cement, real estate, hospitality, IT, spor ...

successfully executed and delivered First F1

Indian Grand Prix The Indian Grand Prix was a Formula One race in the calendar of the FIA Formula One World Championship, which was held at the Buddh International Circuit in Sector 25 along Yamuna Expressway in Gautam Buddh Nagar district of Uttar Pradesh Sta ...

, an international event at

Buddh International Circuit The Buddh International Circuit ( hi, बुद्ध अंतरराष्ट्रीय परिपथ) is an Indian motor racing circuit situated in National Capital Region at Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh. The track shares its name with ...

Greater Noida Greater Noida is a planned city located in Gautam Buddha Nagar district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city was created as an extension to Noida area under the ''UP Industrial Area Development Act, 1976''. Situated south-east of t ...

constructed by Jaypee Group. The event was hailed as flawlessly conducted salvaging some of India's prestige when compared to minor embarrassments in

2010 Commonwealth Games The 2010 Commonwealth Games (Hindi: 2010 राष्ट्रमण्डल खेल), officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Delhi 2010, was an international multi-sport event that was held in Delhi, India, f ...

(Before opening ceremony) conducted in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders wi ...

. Mayawati presented the winning trophy to winner

Sebastian Vettel Sebastian Vettel (; born 3 July 1987) is a German racing driver who competed in Formula One from 2007 to 2022 for BMW Sauber, Toro Rosso, Red Bull, Ferrari, and Aston Martin. Vettel is one of the most successful drivers in Formula One histor ...

. Foreigners found the track as 'impressive' and 3 Indian teenagers picked by a F1 panel to train them as future Formula One drivers in Europe. Mayawati has seen through to completion of several memorials dedicated to icons of Bahujan Samaj build first time in India, including the Manyawar Shri Kanshiram Ji Green Eco Garden (inaugurated March 2011), the

Rashtriya Dalit Prerna Sthal and Green Garden The Rashtriya Dalit Prerna Sthal and Green Garden (''National Dalit Inspiration Place and Green Garden'') is a memorial in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was commissioned by former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Mayawati and inaugurated on ...

(inaugurated October 2011), and the Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Samajik Parivartan Prateek Sthal (opened November 2012). She renamed Amethi district as Chattrapati Sahuji Maharaj Nagar, Kanpur Dehat as Rambai Nagar, Sambhal as Bheem Nagar, Shamli as Prabuddha Nagar, Hapur as Panchsheel Nagar, Kasganj as Kanshiram Nagar, Hathras as Mahamaya Nagar and Amroha as JP Nagar. Mayawati during her tenure directed all the Commissioners and the District Magistrates to distribute 3 acre land pieces or pattas to weaker sections of society by launching special drive for illegal possesses of pattas be dispossessed of them and the eligible poor be identified by regular monitoring of pattas and strict action against the mafias and musclemen through spot verification of different development and public welfare programmes. In 2010, 5596 people belonging to the SC and ST communities were allotted 1054.879 hectares of agriculture land. In a special drive 74 FIRs were filed and 88 people were arrested for illegal occupation from agricultural land. ''Sugar Information Service'' a model website supported by

SMS Short Message/Messaging Service, commonly abbreviated as SMS, is a text messaging service component of most telephone, Internet and mobile device systems. It uses standardized communication protocols that let mobile devices exchange short text ...

and IVRS facility was developed. Mayawati dedicated the 286-bed super-specialty Centenary hospital in Lucknow and 50-bed critical care unit at CSMMU and increased salaries of doctors. Mayawati, in 2007, launched Manyawar Kanshiram Multi-speciality Hospital in Greater Noida which started its OPD services in April 2013. Mayawati government also spent on Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Multi Speciality Hospital in Sector 30 of Noida. Her government also instituted ''Sant Ravidas Kala Samman Award'' with a cash prize of . Under ''Savitri Bai Phule Balika Shiksha Madad Yojna'', Mayawati distributed over 10 lakh bicycles among Muslim and poor school girls from 2008 to 2011. After coming to power in 2007, Mayawati wrote letters to the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

regarding partitioning of Uttar Pradesh into four different states in 2007, in March 2008 and December 2009. Finally on 15 November 2011, Mayawati's

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

approved partitioning Uttar Pradesh into four different states ( Pashchim Pradesh, Awadh Pradesh,

Bundelkhand Bundelkhand (, ) is a geographical and cultural region and a proposed state and also a mountain range in central & North India. The hilly region is now divided between the states of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, with the larger portion lying ...

and

Purvanchal Purvanchal () is a subregion of the Bhojpuri region of India which comprises eastern Uttar Pradesh. Purvanchal region gained independence from the Avadh and Mughal rule under Zamindar Balwant Singh, a Bhumihar zamindar from Benaras State. ...

) for better administration and governance. On 6 March 2012 the Bahujan Samaj Party lost its majority to the

and Mayawati tendered her resignation to the governor of Uttar Pradesh the next day, thereby becoming the first CM to complete five full years in office. On 13 March 2012 she filed nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha, and she was declared elected unopposed on 22 March.

Political and legal issues

The Middle Portion with the right Dome in the Backdrop

Mayawati's political career has attracted praise and controversy. She has been praised for her fundraising efforts on behalf of her party, and her birthdays were major media events as well as a symbol for her supporters. The increase in her personal wealth and that of her party have been viewed by critics as signs of corruption.

Taj corridor

In 2002, the government of Uttar Pradesh began improvements of the infrastructure in the Taj Heritage Corridor, the important tourist area in

Agra Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is ...

that includes the

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...

. The project was soon riddled with problems, including funds being released for the project without the submission of the required detailed project reports to the environmental authorities. Suspecting there were financial irregularities as well, the

Central Bureau of Investigation The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the premier investigating agency of India. It operates under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. Originally set up to investigate bribery and governme ...

(CBI) raided twelve residences, including Mayawati's. It had filed a

First Information Report __NOTOC__ A first information report (FIR) is a document prepared by police organisations in Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asian countries including Myanmar, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan when they receive information about the commi ...

against her and seven others two days earlier. The raid uncovered evidence of assets disproportionate to her known income. Afterwards, Mayawati resigned from her own government to prove that she was not "hungry for power" She asked the BJP-run

Government of India The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

to remove Union Tourism and Culture Minister,

Jagmohan Jagmohan Malhotra (25 September 1927 – 3 May 2021), known by the mononym Jagmohan, was an Indian civil servant and politician. After working with the Indian National Congress, he joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in 1995. He served as Lieute ...

for conspiring this all controversy against her. In June 2007, Governor T. V. Rajeswar said that there was insufficient evidence to prosecute her. In his 23-page order, he said: "the fact that the Mission Management Board, consisting of officers of both the State and the Central Government, regularly met and discussed the project and the fact that even a sum of 17 crores was spent through the Central Government public sector undertaking, NPCC, all go to show that the serious offences with which Mayawati and the Minister were charged do not stand scrutiny." Advocates unsuccessfully challenged the governor's decision in court. The Supreme Court rejected the plea of the CBI and refused to direct the governor to prosecute her. The Taj corridor case was effectively ended before going to trial.

Disproportionate assets case

In the 2007–08 assessment year, Mayawati paid an

income tax An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Tax ...

of 26 crore, ranking among the top 20 taxpayers in the country. Earlier the CBI filed a case against her for owning assets disproportionate to her known sources of income. Mayawati described the CBI investigation against her as illegal. Her party asserted that her income comes from gifts and small contributions made by party workers and supporters. On 3 August 2011 the Delhi High court dismissed the central government's appeal against Mayawati, stating that "she has fully discharged her obligations by disclosing the identities of all of her donors, the gifts had been donated by her supporters". The central government decided not to file an appeal in the Supreme Court. On 13 March 2012 Mayawati revealed assets worth 111.26 crore in an affidavit filed with her nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha. The disproportionate assets case was finally quashed on 6 July 2012—nine years later—by a Supreme Court bench of Justice

P Sathasivam Palanisamy Sathasivam (born 27 April 1949) is an Indian judge who served as the 40th Chief Justice of India, holding the office from 2013 to 2014. On retirement from his judicial career, Sathasivam was appointed the 21st Governor of Kerala fr ...

and

Dipak Misra Justice Dipak Misra (born 3 October 1953) is an Indian jurist who served as the 45th Chief Justice of India from 28 August 2017 till 2 October 2018. He is also former Chief Justice of the Patna High Court and Delhi High Court. He is the nephew ...

; the court found that the case was unwarranted. Based on an opinion received from the Directorate of Prosecution, the CBI decided not to file an appeal. On 4 October 2012 a

review petition In India, a binding decision of the Supreme Court/ High Court can be reviewed in Review Petition. The parties aggrieved on any order of the Supreme Court on any apparent error can file a review petition. Taking into consideration the principle of st ...

was filed by Kamlesh Verma, contending that the case had been dismissed merely on technical grounds, and that the evidence had not been adequately reviewed. On 8 August 2013 the Supreme Court declined a request to re-open the case. After seeking legal advice, the CBI finally closed their file on 8 October 2013.

Bahujan monuments

In her tenures as a Chief Minister, Mayawati commissioned the production and public display of several monuments having parks, gallerias, museums, memorials, murals and statues representing Buddhist and Hindu, Dalit/ OBC icons like

Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in ...

Gadge Maharaj Gadge Maharaj (23 February 1876 - 20 December 1956; also known as Sant Gadge Maharaj or Sant Gadge Baba) was an Indian mendicant-saint and social reformer from the Indian state of Maharashtra. He lived in voluntary poverty and wandered to diffe ...

, Sant Ravidas,

Sant Kabir Kabir Das (1398–1518) was a 15th-century Indian mystic poet and saint. His writings influenced Hinduism's Bhakti movement, and his verses are found in Sikhism's scripture Guru Granth Sahib, the Satguru Granth Sahib of Saint Garib Das, ...

Narayana Guru Narayana Guru, , (20 August 1856 – 20 September 1928) was a philosopher, spiritual leader and social reformer in India. He led a reform movement against the injustice in the caste-ridden society of Kerala in order to promote spiritual ...

Jyotirao Phule Jyotirao Govindrao Phule, also known as Mahatma Jyotiba Phule (11 April 1827 – 28 November 1890) was an Indian social activist, thinker, anti-caste social reformer and writer from Maharashtra. His work extended to many fields, including era ...

, Chatrapati Shahuji Maharaj,

Babasaheb Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served a ...

, BSP party founder

, and of herself. She claims that the expenditure was required because the past governments did not show respect towards Dalit leaders, in whose memory nothing had ever been built. She spent somewhere between 25 and 60 billion rupees (about US$500 million to US$1.3 billion) on projects in five parks and at memorials such as Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Samajik Parivartan Sthal and Manyavar Kanshiram Smarak Sthal, built in the name of B.R. Ambedkar, Ramabai Ambedkar, and Kanshi Ram in Lucknow between 2007 and 2009. The

Comptroller and Auditor General of India The Comptroller and Auditor General of India is the supreme audit institution of India, established under Article 148 of the Constitution of India. They are empowered to audit all receipts and expenditure of the Government of India and the ...

reported that 66 crore (about US$12 million) in excessive costs had been incurred on the construction of the memorials. In February 2010 Mayawati's government approved a plan for a special police force to protect the statues, as she feared that her political opponents might demolish them. In December 2010, her government received permission to continue part of the plan, namely maintenance and completion of

Ambedkar Memorial Park Ambedkar Memorial Park, formally known as Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar Samajik Parivartan Prateek Sthal, is a public park and memorial in Gomti Nagar, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. The memorial is dedicated to B. R. Ambedkar, the 20th century Indian p ...

. Despite the existing Supreme Court stay, in October 2011 Mayawati inaugurated the

, built at a cost of 685 crore. Since the memorial also features her own statues, Mayawati was accused by the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British ...

of wasting the taxpayers' money. The BSP dismissed the allegations, stating that her statues were erected because Kanshi Ram's will requested that his statues should be constructed next to those of the current President of BSP. Mayawati accused the Congress of being "anti-Dalit". In January 2012, the

Election Commission An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...

ordered that all of the statues of Mayawati as well as recent statues of elephants ( the symbol of the Bahujan Samaj Party) should be covered up until after February's Uttar Pradesh election. On 26 July 2012 the statue in Lucknow was damaged by members of a group calling themselves "Uttar Pradesh Naunirman Sena". A replacement statue was re-installed overnight by the Lucknow city administration. Following the Lucknow vandalism, there were similar such incidents in other parts of Uttar Pradesh.

World Bank criticism

The

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...

lent India funds for development, and Mayawati was to manage projects with this money in UP. The projects were preplanned and on schedule, but the Mayawati government made changes which put the projects behind schedule, including rapidly transferring upper caste managers in and out of rural posts. The World Bank sent a letter of complaint on 1 August 2002 to India's central government stating, "We have now learnt that project managers have been replaced within three weeks of assuming office. The project coordinator of the Diversified Agriculture Support Project has been changed twice in quick succession and at the moment there is no project coordinator. In the forestry project, numerous changes have been made over past six months ... Such developments do not augur well for these time-bound projects that require consistently good leadership." Mayawati initially responded by saying the letter was a fake and later said there had been a misunderstanding. She then decreased the number of transfers, stopped creating new posts, and temporarily reduced the level of government spending on furniture and vehicles in response to the allegations. The World Bank continued to criticise the level of corruption even after these measures had been implemented.

Positions held

Kumari Mayawati has been elected 3 times as

MP and 4 times as

MP. As per the Election affidavit of 2012 (

), Mayawati has assets worth

₹ The Indian rupee sign (₹) is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its select ...

111.64 crores and liabilities worth

87.68

lakh A lakh (; abbreviated L; sometimes written lac) is a unit in the Indian numbering system equal to one hundred thousand (100,000; scientific notation: 105). In the Indian 2,2,3 convention of digit grouping, it is written as 1,00,000. For ...

s (0.87 crores).

Personal life and public image

Mayawati started her political career after Kanshi Ram, the founder of Bahujan Samaj Party, persuaded her to join the civil service and politics. Mayawati chose to remain unmarried. She is also known as the ''Iron Lady Mayawati''. Kanshi Ram praised Mayawati at her 47th birthday celebrations for her fundraising activities on behalf of the party. He stated that the party's eventual goal is to gain power at the national level, and that Mayawati's efforts had helped in that quest. Her birthdays have since become major media events at which she has appeared laden with diamonds. Her supporters have declared her birthday as ''Jan Kalyankari Diwas'' (People's Welfare Day). In 2009, the day was marked by the announcement of welfare schemes targeted towards poor and downtrodden people of the state and, in 2010, by the launch of social programmes with a value of over 7,312 crore. In 2007–08, Mayawati paid as income tax. She was at number 20 in the I-T department's compilation of the top 200 taxpayers' list with names like

Shah Rukh Khan Shah Rukh Khan (; born 2 November 1965), also known by the initialism SRK, is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. Referred to in the media as the " Baadshah of Bollywood", "King of Bollywood" ...

and

Sachin Tendulkar Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar (; ; born 24 April 1973) is an Indian former international cricketer who captained the Indian national team. He is regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket. He is the all time highest run-sco ...

. Mayawati paid in advance tax in April–December 2007. She paid on other incomes, most of which was declared by her as "gifts" by party members. When BSP workers garlanded Mayawati with currency notes on the occasion of the party's silver jubilee celebrations coinciding with BSP founder Kanshi Ram's birth anniversary on 15 March 2010, Indian news channels and newspapers purported to expose the event as a ‘scandal’ on the presumption that the Chief Minister had publicly committed an act of corruption that was being flaunted openly and declaring that the garland of currency notes was made from money through corrupt means and not from donations of Bahujan Samaj Party supporters as Mayawati, her Ministers and supporters claimed. At Kanshi Ram's funeral ceremonies in 2006, Mayawati stated that both Kanshi Ram and herself had been, and she would continue to be, observant of

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

traditions and customs. She has stated her intention to formally convert to Buddhism when the political conditions enable her to become

Prime Minister of India The prime minister of India ( IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of th ...

. Her act of performing the

last rites The last rites, also known as the Commendation of the Dying, are the last prayers and ministrations given to an individual of Christian faith, when possible, shortly before death. They may be administered to those awaiting execution, mortal ...

(traditionally done by a male heir) was an expression of their views against

gender discrimination Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but it primarily affects women and girls.There is a clear and broad consensus among academic scholars in multiple fields that sexism refers primar ...

. When she was Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, she publicly called

Bhikkhu A ''bhikkhu'' (Pali: भिक्खु, Sanskrit: भिक्षु, ''bhikṣu'') is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male and female monastics (" nun", '' bhikkhunī'', Sanskrit ''bhikṣuṇī'') are members of the Sangha (Buddhi ...

s to prayer.

Literature about Mayawati

Literature about Mayawati includes studies and books. One of the first works about her was journalist Mohammad Jamil Akhter's book, ''Iron Lady Kumari Mayawati''. Her autobiographies are ''Mere Sangarshmai Jeevan Evam Bahujan Movement Ka Safarnama'' in three volumes in Hindi and ''A Travelogue of My Struggle-ridden Life and of Bahujan Samaj'', in two volumes in English. ''Behenji : A Political Biography of Mayawati'' is a biography by veteran journalist Ajoy Bose.

Awards and recognition

In 2003, Mayawati as the Chief Minister, was awarded '' Paul Harris Fellow Award'' by

UNICEF UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid t ...

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level o ...

and

Rotary International Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, prof ...

, for her initiative in

Polio eradication Polio eradication, the permanent global cessation of circulation by the poliovirus and hence elimination of the poliomyelitis (polio) it causes, is the aim of a multinational public health effort begun in 1988, led by the World Health Organiz ...

. Mayawati was also honoured with ''Rajarshi Shahu Award'' by Rajarshi Shahu Memorial Trust. In 2008, ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' added Mayawati in the 59th place on its list of the 100 most powerful women in the world. She appeared in ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely ...

''s top woman achievers list in 2007. In 2009 a ''Newsweek'' article described her as the

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

of India, and a potential candidate for

. ''Time'' magazine included Mayawati in India's 15 Most Influential list for 2007.

References

External links

Official biodata

Bahujan Samaj Party
{{Good article 1956 births Living people Dalit women India MPs 2004–2009 Chief Ministers of Uttar Pradesh People from Bijnor district Bahujan Samaj Party politicians Leaders of political parties in India Chaudhary Charan Singh University alumni Uttar Pradesh MLAs 1997–2002 India MPs 1989–1991 India MPs 1998–1999 India MPs 1999–2004 Uttar Pradesh MLAs 2002–2007 Rajya Sabha members from Uttar Pradesh Lok Sabha members from Uttar Pradesh Women members of the Rajya Sabha Women chief ministers of Indian states Women members of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly 20th-century Indian women politicians 20th-century Indian politicians 21st-century Indian women politicians 21st-century Indian politicians Dalit politicians Women members of the Lok Sabha People from Akbarpur, Ambedkar Nagar Faculty of Law, University of Delhi alumni People charged with corruption