The Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati is holding a rally in Patna at the historical Gandhi maidan on February 6.
She may learn here that her proposed Purvanchal sate must include Bhojpuri dialect, culture. As of now purvanchal is Awadhi speaking not Bhojpuri. There is section that objects to blurring the distinction between Awadhi and Bhojpuri. They have a lot
in common particulairy in Awadhi-Bhojpuri border areas like Gorakhpur
and Chandauli.
This section argues that the Mumbai film industry has for long portrayed Awadhi as 'bhojpuri', but that doesn't mean that Awadhi becomes Bhojpuri. Areas like Faizabad and Bahraich are not Bhojpuri speaking at all. They are the main strongholds of Awadhi.
After capturing the fort in Uttar Pradesh, the BSP supremo is eying Bihar. Political parties have given mixed response to Maya's rally in the state.
On one hand where RJD chief Lalu Prasad has hailed Mayawati's rally in the state, LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan is not ready to allow any intrusions into his home turf. Paswan has said that Maya's magic will not work in Bihar.
Mayawati landing at the Gandhi Maidan in a helicopter.
The rally is meant to unite underprivileged and extremely poor people in the state to give "a befitting reply to those in the power putting hurdles in the way of their uplift".
The BSP's rally comes after opposition RJD and Lok Janshakti Party held rallies in October and November last year here seeking to highlight the alleged failure of the Nitish Kumar government in Bihar.
Her maiden visit to the state after assuming the office of UP chief minister last year, to address an open rally has assumed special significance for a different reason, raising many an eyebrows among the political circle.
Unlike any other VVIPs including former prime ministers Indira Gandhi, Morarji Desai and Atal Behari Vajpayee, Ms Mayawati has decided to travel the barely five km distance from the Patna airport to the rally ground in a helicopter instead of coming by road which had remained the common practice of all other VVIPs. According to her itinerary, the BSP chief on her arrival at the Patna airport at around 12 noon would board a state government helicopter to travel the five km distance to Gandhi Maidan in less than one minute to create a sort of history of its kind.
The state government had to cough up about Rs two lakh from its exchequer to prepare a helipad in the rally ground.
Unprecedented security cover has also been made both at the airport and at the Gandhi Maidan for Mayawati.
It was at the Gandhi Maidan that Jaiprakash Narayan had made the historic call for a “Total Revolution” in 1974.
When contacted, District Magistrate, Patna, B Rajendra said that the request for landing the chopper inside Gandhi Maidan was made citing the twin factors of “security” and “time.” “For security reasons and also to save time, the request for landing the UP Government chopper inside Gandhi Maidan was made and we granted it”, Rajendra said. He said that the UP Chief Minister will reach Patna airport by a state aircraft and then board a state chopper to land at the maidan.
CM Nitish Kumar strongly refuted the security factor and pointed out that convenience might have led her to decide to land in the maidan. “So far as security is concerned, I can say with authority that the state Government is competent to safeguard any VIP. But if somebody wants to land at the maidan for convenience, then what can we do”, said Kumar.
