Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati on Sunday announced that her party will not forge an alliance with any party in the forthcoming state assemblies and Lok Sabha elections due next year and will contest on its own.

Talking to the reports on the occasion of her 67th birthday, Mayawati said, "Regarding BSP I want to tell one thing necessarily that staying far away from the money power of the capitalists and their dictates the party is dedicated towards the interest and welfare of the hardworking people and those of Bahujan Samaj."

She released the 18th volume of 'A Travelogue of My Struggle-Ridden Life and BSP Movement. Her birthday was celebrated as People's Welfare Day across Uttar Pradesh.

She said, "The main objective of BSP is to win the election on the strength of the alliance based on the brotherhood of Bahujan Samaj, including SC, ST, OCB, Muslims and others and to improve their socio-economic condition."

BSP supremo said, "Following this principle strictly I would like to clarify that in the assembly elections scheduled in Karnataka, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh or any other state 2023 or even in the Lok Sabha polls BSP will not forge any alliance with any party instead it will contest on its own."

She said that it has become necessary to announce the policy of the party as some parties, specially Congress, have deliberately started spreading misconception of having an alliance with BSP as a part of a conspiracy. "So far except Punjab, BSP had to suffer loss in whatever one or two political alliances the party had done in the past in UP and other states as their votes were not transferable," said.

Mayawati said, "Keeping in mind the bad experiences so far our party has decided to contest the forthcoming assembly elections and the Lok Sabha election on its own."

She also demanded that all elections should be held through ballot papers instead of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). "There are different types of apprehension in the minds of the people as the elections are being held through EVMs from the last few years. To remove these doubts it would be better that now all elections, whether big or small, should be held directly through ballot papers, as was being done previously," she said.

Mayawati said, "This is BSP's strong demand and advice to the Chief Election Commissioner and the central government."

(With UNI inputs)