With an eye on coming lok Sabha elections the Samajwadi Party flagged off two Rath Yatras demanding inclusion of 17 most backward castes (MBCs) in the Scheduled Caste category in the name of social justice.
The yatras flagged off by party’s national president Mulayam Singh Yadav and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh were called Adhikar Rathyatra' and 'Samajik Nyay Rathyatra' respectively. Mulayam Singh Yadav said that through these Yatras the party would highlight the plight of backward caste. These Yatras will culminate into a big rally to be held in state capital on December 14.
"The people from the backward community will teach the Congress, BJP and BSP a lesson in forthcoming lok Sabha election as these parties have played with their sentiments," he said and added that Samajwadi Party is destined to sweep the next General election. CM and party's state president Akhilesh Yadav blamed Congress for the plight of backwards and said that Congress ignored their demands and only formulated policies that were beneficial for the industrialists.
"The Congress government at the Centre is just interested in looting government public exchequer therefore scams after scams are reported in last 10 years of the UPA rule. This government is least bothered about poor and backward," he said. Yadav called upon the party youths to take the responsibility to take the party to a new high in lok Sabha elections. "Our government has implemented people oriented policies. It distributed laptops, gave unemployment allowances, re-launched Kanya Vidyadhan and other schemes. Instead the previous BSP government only minted money for themselves or constructed parks and memorials in the name of their dalit leaders," he said.
Describing the plight of the backwards, he said the demand for giving SC status to 17 backward castes is old but the Centre has taken note of this. UP minister of state for Mining Gayatri Prasad Prajapati, convenor of the Rath Yatras, said that that even after several requests the Centre has not responded to State Government’s demand to give SC status to 17 backward caste people. He also criticised BJP for trying to divide the society on the name of most backward during the previous Rajnath Singh regime.
The first phase of the two rath yatras would end at Azamgarh on October 29 where the party supremo would address ' Desh Bachao, Desh Banao' rally at Azamgarh. The first Samajik Nyay rath yatra will cover Barabanki, Faizabad, Basti and Gorakhpur districts before reaching Azamgarh covering around 585 km in five days. The second 17 backward caste Adhikar Rath Yatra will cover Sultanpur, Jaunpur, Varanasi, Ballia and Mau covering 540 kms in five days.