Mayawati withdraws BSP support to UPA government

Mumbai: Uttar Pradesh chief minister and leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has withdrawn her party's support to the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the centre.

For the UPA, which is already annoyed by the Left parties' nuclear stand-off, the withdrawal of support of 17 BSP MPs has come as another jolt.

There is no immediate threat to the survival of the UPA coalition government at the centre. 

But if the Left parties choose to withdraw support of their 59 MPs, then the government will have to look for support to other parties like BSP's rival SP which has 39 MPs.

In a House with an effective strength of 543, the UPA enjoys support of 237 members - 35 short of simple majority.

Mayawati withdrew BSP's support to the Congress-led coalition alleging ''neglect, step-motherly treatment and negative approach towards her state'' and on the issue of runaway inflation.

"There won't be any electoral alliance neither with Congress nor with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). UPA has left the Taj Corridor case lingering against me for political mileage and its attitude to my state has been very hostile," Mayawati said at a press conference.

Mayawatti has written to President Pratibha Patil, Lok Sabha speaker Somnath Chatterjee and Congress president Sonia Gandhi informing them about her party's withdrawal of support.