After the promise of 300 units of free electricity, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday lured the voters with offers ranging from food to pension, canteen to Kirana stores.
Predicting victory for the SP-RLD alliance, Akhilesh said, “The next big surprise will not come from Uttar Pradesh but from Gujarat. The people of UP have made up their minds to dislodge the BJP from power in UP.”
The Assembly elections are due in Gujarat later this year and the BJP is in power in the western State for over two decades.
Akhilesh promised to launch “Samajwadi Thali” priced at `10 for the poor people and Samajwadi Pension if his party formed the next Government. The SP chief also promised to start Samajwadi canteen, Samajwadi Kirana stores, restore the old pension and reopen the closed cycle factory in Ghaziabad.
Addressing a joint Press conference with Jayant Chowdhary of the RLD at Ghaziabad on Saturday, Akhilesh said the alliance is banking on the politics of unity, harmony and cohesion while the BJP is pursuing the politics of division.
“The BJP claims that the Government has provided free food grain to 80 crore people during the pandemic but they hide the crucial fact that same number of people lost their jobs,” said the SP chief.
Flaunting the red colour small grain bag (Ann potli) Akhilesh said the people should show the red colour LPG cylinder to the BJP leaders visiting their home for door to door campaign.
He said the cost of the cylinder is beyond the reach of the common people. Targeting the BJP on three farm laws, SP chief said the BJP failed to tell the people as to why the three laws were brought and why the bills were repealed.
Akhilesh asked farmers to be wary of the BJP, saying the ruling party’s Government had withdrawn its controversial farm laws only for the sake of votes. He also assured farmers that if their alliance forms the Government in Uttar Pradesh, they will not allow the implementation of any such anti-farmer law in the State.
The SP chief said this time the BJP will face a “political exodus”.
“Have you not seen what type of exodus our Baba CM (Yogi Adityanath) has to make? He was seeking ticket from Ayodhya, Mathura or Prayagraj. The BJP sent him back home,” he said referring the CM’s candidature from Gorakhpur urban, the area which he had represented in Parliament earlier.
Akhilesh reiterated that Chaudhary Charan Singh should be awarded the Bharat Ratna. “Jayant Chaudhary and I will remove the politics of negativity and we will fight to save our Ganga-Jamuni ‘tehzeeb’ (culture) and brotherhood,” Akhilesh said.
Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant said his party’s alliance with the SP is “solid” and aimed at furthering the cause of farmers. Ahead of the Assembly polls, the BJP is reaching out to the Jats in western Uttar Pradesh, from where members of the community had taken part in the year-long stir against the laws at the Delhi border points.