Mayawati elected UP chief minister

LUCKNOW: Mayawati, who single-handedly steered BSP to a stunning victory in Uttar Pradesh, was today elected Chief Minister by her newly-elected party MLAs.

A day after her party won a majority on its won bagging 206 of the 402 seats in the Assembly, Mayawati was elected leader of the BSP Legislature Party by show of hands by the MLAs. Her name was proposed by senior leader Indrajit Saroj andstate unit President Lalji Verma.

Mayawati thanked the MLAs for supporting her and told them that she would meet the Governor shortly later to be invited by him to form the government. Fifty-one year-old Mayawati is expected to meet Governor T V Rajeshwar at 1500 hours.

She is likley to be sworn in as chief minister tomorrow.

Earlier addressing the MLAs during the short meeting, she said the meeting was being held in the presence of the media because there should not be no talk of any pressure in the process.

After that, her name was proposed and immediately approved unanimously by the newly-elected MLAs by a show of hands.

Mayawati became the first Dalit Chief Minister in India in 1993 when she assumed reins after her party won the polls in alliance with Samajwadi Party.

She became chief minister in 1997 in alliance with BJP and later again with the help of saffron party in 2002.