LUCKNOW: BSP chief Mayawati on Tuesday said that the newly elected President Ram Nath Kovind not paying homage to BR Ambedkar in the premises of Parliament hall has again showed BJP's anti-Ambedkar stance.Mayawati said that though Kovind has a RSS background but he paid homage to Mahatama Gandhi, which was more of a custom to follow for a person getting elevated to a high constitutional seat. "Nevertheless, Kovindji should have also paid homage to Dalit ideolgue like Ambedkar but he didn't. This was unexpected from a person who comes from the same social background as that of Ambedkar,'' said Mayawati in a statement.The BSP chief said that Kovind should not forget that he attained the highest constitutional post because of the movement launched by Ambedkar and then subsequently by BSP founder Kanshiram. "The movement of Dalit emancipation forced the BJP to field a Dalit for Presidential election,'' Mayawati said.The BSP president also said that PM Narendra Modi should look beyond Gujarat and focus on flood problems marring various states across the country.

Source: Times of India July 25, 2017 14:48 UTC