This could quadruple the number of states ruled by her Bahujan Samaj Party, though many believe it would bring improvements in administration.

ECONOMIST: Attempts to satisfy demands for local autonomy backfire

Mr Bhardwaj, 62, of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), was shot dead at his house in the capital, Delhi, last week.

BBC: Deepak Bhardwaj

Deepak Bhardwaj, of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), was killed by two unidentified men at his house on the outskirts of the capital, police said.

BBC: Deepak Bhardwaj

The Samaj Parivartan Samuday group said the court had rightly cancelled the mining leases of the worst offenders and laid stringent guidelines for the reopening of others.

WSJ: Court Eases Mining Ban in Karnataka

This despite the fact that her Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), a regional party based in Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state, has only 17 seats in the parliament.

BBC: India's Dalit icon aims for top job

Friday's win in the upper house came after the regional Bahujan Samaj Party's 15 MPs voted with the government, which does not have a majority in the chamber.

BBC: India government wins upper house vote on retail reform

The court halted mining of the ore in the mineral-rich state in 2011 after social activist group Samaj Parivartan Samuday alleged that rampant illegal mining had damaged the environment.

WSJ: Court Eases Mining Ban in Karnataka

About 150 furious supporters of Ms Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) then marched to Ms Joshi's house in the state capital, Lucknow, and set it on fire, reports the BBC's Ram Dutt Tripathi.

BBC: India leader held over comments

Many Congress members were more embarrassed by the fact that their party contested the polls in a seat-sharing alliance with the Bahujan Samaj Party, a relatively new group that claims to represent India's untouchables.

CNN: Hard Times for Congress

But it is banking on regional parties, mainly Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party which together have 43 members, to help it keep above the half-way mark of 270 in the 540 member house.

WSJ: India Coalition Says Government Stable

The government victory in the Lok Sabha came about after MPs from the regional Bahujan Samaj Party and the Samajwadi Party walked out ahead of the vote, bringing down the majority required for them to win.

BBC: Indian government wins controversial foreign retail vote