Dalit party to use Pinki to `expose` Mayawati

Eight-year-old Pinki Sonkar, will publicly expose the "anti-Dalit face" of Mayawati.

Lucknow, March 08: Eight-year-old Pinki Sonkar, the protagonist of Megan Mylan`s Oscar-winning documentary "Smile Pinki", will publicly expose the "anti-Dalit face" of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati, the National Dalit Front (NDF) said Saturday."With the help of Pinki we are now going to unmask the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) government, which only pretends to fight for Dalit rights," NDF general secretary Udit Raj told reporters on telephone from New Delhi.

Udit Raj said he met Pinki and her parents at their home in Rampur Dabai village in Uttar Pradesh`s Mirzapur district. Her parents had agreed to let her take part in public meetings. He said he gave her a cash award of Rs5,000. NDF members allege that unlike the Maharashtra government that has provided flats to the slum children who acted in "Slumdog Millionare", the Mayawati government has failed to do anything substantial for Pinki. "Mayawati, who claims to be the custodian of Dalit rights, has not done anything significant for Pinki or her family. Under the banner of NDF, Pinki will highlight the issue in the public meetings," said Udit Raj, who is also chief of the Indian Justice Party (IJP). He said Pinki will be felicitated at NDF public meetings. She will take part in a public function in New Delhi March 15 and share the platform with Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ram Vilas Paswan, the NDF president. IANS