Leader of India's lower castes hosts rally displaying her party's strength

Mayawati Kumari, 54, is a former school teacher and the leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party. She has risen to the upper rungs of India's political landscape by attracting the votes of the Dalits, who are at the bottom of the Hindu caste hierarchy.
Monday's celebration marked Mayawati's own rise to high political stature as much as it did the birth of her party.
The Bahujan Samaj Party was formed in 1984 by Mayawati's political mentor Kanshi Ram.
The party now governs India's largest state, Uttar Pradesh, home to 180 million people.