Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, on Friday, said the unity of INDIA bloc was capable of writing a new history in the Haryana elections, asserting that this was the time to rise above oneself to defeat the “crooked and selfish politics” of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Yadav also said his party would support whichever INDIA bloc member could best defeat the BJP’s “negative, communal and divisive politics” in Haryana.

His statement comes amid the seat-sharing talks between the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party for the Haryana assembly polls with hard bargaining from both sides.

In a post on X, Yadav said this was not the time for SP or any other party of the INDIA bloc to explore political opportunities, but a time for “sacrifice and selflessness”.

“The unity of the INDIA bloc is capable of writing a new history in the Haryana elections. We have said many times and are repeating it once again and will repeat it in future too that it is not about seats but about victory. Whichever party of the INDIA alliance is capable of defeating the negative, communal, divisive politics of BJP which is against the development and harmony of Haryana, we will join the power of our organisation and supporters with it,” the SP chief said.

“On the path of public welfare, there is no place for selfishness. Crooked and selfish people can never make their name in history. This moment is a historic opportunity to rise above ourselves to defeat such politics. We are ready, with an open heart, to make every sacrifice for the benefit of Haryana,” his post in Hindi read.

Exuding confidence in the victory of the INDIA bloc in the Haryana assembly polls, the SP chief wrote on X, “We have said this many time before, and we will say it again and continue to do so in the future: ‘'It’s not about the seat; it’s about victory’.”

“It is not about fielding candidates in a few seats, but about understanding the pain and suffering of the people and freeing them from the BJP’s corrupt and manipulative politics. It is about the true development of Haryana and the welfare of its people. Over the last 10 years, the BJP has pushed Haryana’s development back by two decades,” his post added.   

Voting in 90 assembly constituencies of Haryana will be held on October 5 and counting of votes will be taken up on October 8.

In the last assembly polls, the BJP had emerged as the single-largest party and formed a coalition government in a post-poll alliance with the Jannayak Janata Party. However, the BJP-JJP alliance broke earlier this year just before the Lok Sabha polls. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP and the Congress won five seats each of the 10 seats in Haryana.