Mayawati

Some Lesser Known Facts About Mayawati

• She was born in a Hindu Dalit family and her father, Prabhu Das, was employed in a post office at Badalpur, Gautam Buddha Nagar in Uttar Pradesh.

• She holds multiple academic degrees (B.A., LLB, B.Ed.) and has worked as a teacher in Inderpuri JJ Colony in Delhi.

• When Kanshi Ram first met her in 1977, she was preparing for the Indian Administrative Services.

• According to some sources, Kanshi 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.”

• In 1984, Kanshi Ram included her as a founding member of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

• Throughout her career, Mayawati voiced reservations in both government and private sectors.

• Former Prime Minister of India, P. V. Narasimha Rao referred to her political career as a “miracle of democracy.”

• When she became the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh on 3rd June 1995, she was the youngest Chief Minister in the history of the state and was the first female Dalit Chief Minister in India.

• On 15 December 2001, Kanshi Ram named Mayawati as his successor in a rally in Lucknow.

• She was first elected as the National President of BSP on 18 September 2003.

• She has served as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh four times.

• She is considered as a self-made woman politician.

• She chose to remain unmarried to serve people so that nobody could accuse her of nepotism.

• Her birthday is celebrated as Jan Kalyankari Diwas by her supporters.

• In 2007-2008, she paid 26.26 crore as income tax and was listed at number 20 in the list of top 200 taxpayers of that time.

• During an interview, she revealed her inclination towards Buddhism.

• There are two autobiographies of Mayawati – Mere Sangarshmai Jeevan Evam Bahujan Movement Ka Safarnama (in 3 volumes in Hindi) and A Travelogue of My Struggle-ridden Life and of Bahujan Samaj (in 2 volumes in English).

• Mayawati announced Akash Anand as her successor on 10 December 2023. ^[1]India Today However, on 7 May 2024, she removed him as her political heir and party’s National Coordinator, citing he was not mature enough to hold these portfolios.