Mayawati terms Channi's appointment poll gimmick, says Cong doesn't trust Dalits

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], September 20 (ANI): Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati on Monday said Charanjit Singh Channi's appointment as Punjab Chief Minister is a "poll gimmick" and added that Congress does not fully trust the Dalits.

Briefing mediapersons, Mayawati said, "I congratulate Charanjit Singh Channi on becoming Punjab Chief Minister. It would have been better if he had been appointed as chief minister earlier. Channi's appointment as chief minister a few months ahead of Punjab assembly elections appears to be a poll gimmick."

"I have also come to know through media that the next Punjab assembly elections will be fought under the leadership of a non-Dalit. This means that Congress still does not fully trust the Dalits. Congress is also scared of the SAD-BSP alliance in Punjab," she added.

Notably, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and BSP in June formed an alliance to contest the upcoming Punjab Assembly elections together.

Meanwhile, Charanjit Singh Channi was sworn in as Chief Minister of Punjab on Monday. Channi, a three-time MLA from Rupnagar's Chamkaur Sahib - is Punjab's first Dalit Chief Minister.

On Sunday, after several rounds of parleys, Channi was selected for the post by the party high command, following Captain Amarinder Singh's resignation.

Amarinder Singh on Saturday submitted his resignation to state Governor Banwarilal Purohit, following months of infighting between him and Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) chief Navjot Singh Sidhu.

These development came months before the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections. (ANI)