Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav stood strongly behind Azam Khan and had criticised the Opposition and media for targetting his colleague for organising his birthday.
“I will not leave Azam whatever come what may as he has stood beside me during the time of crisis. Azam’s question on secularism cannot be in doubt as he is one side of a coin if another side is secularism,”Samajwadi Party supremo asserted while addressing a function at the Mohamnad Ali Jauhar Unversity after laying the foundation for a medical college and distributing bi-cycles and scholarships to the students in Rampur on Saturday. Mulayam Singh Yadav, who is celebrating his 75th birthday celebration, said that Opposition was targetting Azam, as he had stood strongly against the communal forces. “I will not leave Azam even if the SP government falls in UP,” he announced. Yadav was again critical against his son Akhilesh government and said now the government should only work and not go for announcements.
“The state ministers, most of whom are here, legislators and even the officers including IAS and IPS ,should at least develop their own native villages. Without development, nothing can happen in the State”, he stated, while adding that Uttar Pradesh had been defamed in the country for lack of development. Yadav said during the last UPA regime he had asked Congress president Sonia Gandhi to remove P Chidambaram as union Finance minister, after he said the state was lagging behind in development. He asked the people to help the poor and get rid of poverty. The former state Chief Minister was all praise for Azam Khan, who had organised a grand celebration for his 75th birthday. “I have never been honoured in such a fashion and credit all goes to Azam,” he stated. Chief Minister Akhikesh Yadav in his address said he will continue to take forward the state on the party’s ideology. Attacking the Opposition, he said some political parties were trying to create differences in the society but they should go through the history of the country as people have always rejected them. Appreciating the birthday celebrations of his father in Rampur, chief minister said “I was the witness to the historic celebrations here and even the world knew, about the programmes through media, though some also felt jealous.”
He also said Azam had done much for Rampur and was always concerned about development in the state. Meanwhile, welcoming the guests, Azam Khan made a sarcastic attack on the media saying his nephew had sent the buggy from london which was purchased for Rs 70 lakh. On Friday, Mulayam Singh Yadav and others had travelled on the buggy for around 14 km while the Opposition had criticised a socialist leader riding a buggy, that too purchased from Britain. He also made several comments against the media during his address. The state minister also alleged that the Centre had tried to kill him in an encounter at Delhi airport recently when the airport authorities claimed that he was travelling with live bullets in the aircraft. On the occasion, Mulayam Singh Yadav said a four-lane road will be constructed inside the Mohammad Ali Jauhar University. State PWD minister Shivpal Singh Yadav announced that all the roads in Rampur will be re-constructed and said a barrage would be constructed on Kosi river near lalpur.