News Analysis India

Tag: Akhilesh Yadav

  • A day before RS polls, 8 SP MLAs skip meeting called by Akhilesh Yadav

    Lucknow: As many as eight MLAs of the Samajwadi Party did not attend a meeting called by party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Monday, a day before the voting for the Rajya Sabha elections. A senior SP leader requesting anonymity said that the party chief had called a meeting to brief the MLAs about the voting process of the Rajya Sabha elections. However, chief whip of the party in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly Manoj Pandey and seven other MLAs — Mukesh Verma, Maharaji Prajapati, Pooja Pal, Rakesh Pandey, Vinod Chaturvedi, Rakesh Pratap Singh and Abhay Singh did not attend the meeting.

    Speaking to PTI, SP’s national spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary accepted that eight MLAs did not attend the dinner and meeting called by party chief Akhilesh Yadav. However, he did not name the MLAs.

    On a question whether Apna Dal (Kamerawadi) leader Pallavi Patel, who is an SP MLA, attended the meeting, Chaudhary said that though she was not in the meeting, she had a separate meeting with Yadav. She also assured her support to the SP candidates in the Rajya Sabha elections, Chaudhary said. The SP’s national spokesperson also said that the real stance of the MLAs who were absent from the meeting will be clear only on Tuesday during the voting for the Rajya Sabha elections.

    He exuded confidence that all the three SP candidates will win the elections.

    The stage is set for a high-pitched electoral battle in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the Lok Sabha polls on Tuesday, with the BJP fielding eight candidates and the opposition Samajwadi Party three for the 10 Rajya Sabha seats. The ruling BJP and the principal opposition SP have the numbers to send seven and three members, respectively to the Rajya Sabha, but with the BJP fielding Sanjay Seth as its eighth candidate, a keen contest is on the cards for one of the seats. Seth, an industrialist and former SP leader, had joined the BJP in 2019.

    The BJP and the SP are the two largest parties in the 403-member state assembly with 252 and 108 MLAs, respectively. The Congress, an alliance partner of the SP, has two seats.

    BJP ally Apna Dal (Sonelal) has 13 seats, NISHAD Party has six seats, RLD has nine, SBSP six, Jansatta Dal Loktantrik two and the BSP has one seat. Four seats are currently vacant.

    The seven other candidates fielded by the BJP are former Union minister RPN Singh, former MP Chaudhary Tejveer Singh, general secretary of the party’s Uttar Pradesh unit Amarpal Maurya, former state minister Sangeeta Balwant, party spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi, former MLA Sadhna Singh and former Agra mayor Naveen Jain.

    The Samajwadi Party has fielded actor-MP Jaya Bachchan, retired IAS officer Alok Ranjan and Dalit leader Ramji Lal Suman.

    To get elected to the Rajya Sabha from Uttar Pradesh, a candidate needs 37 first preference votes, an official said.

    (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)

  • ‘BJP Hatao Desh Bachao’ Akhilesh Yadav Joins Congress In Yatra |

    Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday participated in Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Uttar Pradesh’s Agra. This decision follows Akhilesh’s earlier reluctance to join the yatra until the seat-sharing arrangement with Congress in UP was finalised. As the seat allocations concluded recently, Party MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra welcomed Yadav by saying, “Today is a very happy day.”  

    Demonstrating a united front against the NDA in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Akhilesh Yadav said that the INDIA bloc, together with the backwards and minorities, will defeat the BJP. He further said that nowadays the challenge is to shield democracy and fulfil the dreams of Dr. BR Ambedkar that the BJP has ruined. “Today, there is only one message to be given Remove BJP, save the country and end the crisis (BJP hatao, desh ko bachao, sankat mitao),” he added.  

    The trio addressed the crowd, with Rahul Gandhi recalling his year-long Yatra, covering 4,000 km from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. Rahul said, “Last year, someone told me that ‘you are trying to open a Mohabbat Ki Dukan in Nafrat Ka Bazaar.” He further said that this is what he, along with Akhilesh Yadav and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, are trying to accomplish.  

    Before reaching Agra, the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra passed the Aligarh division and went through Amroha, Sambhal, Bulandshahr, Aligarh, and Hathras. However, Priyanka Gandhi joined the yatra in Aligarh.

  • Farmers, Youth In Distress Under BJP Rule: Akhilesh Yadav`s Big Attack On Modi Govt

    Akhilesh Yadav accused BJP of  BJP of orchestrating corruption and electoral malpractices and said part’s agenda revolves around vote bank politics.

  • Priyanka Gandhi Hospitalised, Skips Rahul-Led Nyay Yatra As It Enters Uttar Pradesh Today |

    New Delhi: Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will not be joining the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Uttar Pradesh on Friday to bad health conditions. “I was eagerly waiting for the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra to reach Uttar Pradesh, but due to illness I had to be admitted to the hospital today itself,” the leader informed via X (formerly Twitter). The Yatra is currently in Bihar and is scheduled to reach Chandauli in UP after concluding the halt in Bihar. UP is the crucial Hindi state that elects the most MPs to the Lok Sabha. 

    Gandhi further wrote that she will be joining the journey as soon as she feels better. “Till then, I wish all the passengers reaching Chandauli-Banaras, my colleagues and dear brother from Uttar Pradesh who are diligently preparing for the journey,” she added. 

    मैं बड़े चाव से उत्तर प्रदेश में भारत जोड़ो न्याय यात्रा के पहुँचने का इंतजार कर रही थी, लेकिन बीमारी की वजह से मुझे आज ही अस्पताल में भर्ती होना पड़ा। थोड़ा बेहतर होते ही मैं यात्रा में जुड़ूँगी। तब तक के लिए चंदौली-बनारस पहुंच रहे सभी यात्रियों, पूरी मेहनत से यात्रा की तैयारी…
    — Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) February 16, 2024

    Nyay Yatra’s Route Not Shortened In UP: Cong

    Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said that the yatra has not been shortened in Uttar Pradesh as it will stay in the key Hindi state for eight days from 16th to 21st February before continuing to western Uttar Pradesh on 24th and 25th February.  Earlier, UPCC chief Ajay Rai had notified that the UP leg of Nyay Yatra has been revised and reduced due to the ongoing UP Board exams.

    Rai said that the changes were made due to logistical issues. He said that the places where the workers and organisers were supposed to stay are mostly private schools or colleges which will now be used for the board exams. 

    The omission of western UP from Rahul’s itinerary is important as it comes after RLD broke away from INDIA bloc. The Congress has a very weak presence in western UP and the party does not have any influential leader in the region. A senior leader said that they do not want to give an impression that Rahul’s presence in a certain area did not help them win seats.

    Rahul Gandhi, the former head of Congress, is spearheading the Nyay Yatra from Manipur to Mumbai. The yatra is now in Bihar. The Manipur-Mumbai Yatra from East to West covers 6,700 km across 15 states and aims to spread the message of “nyay” (justice) while interacting with ordinary people along the way.

  • UP Legislators To Visit Ayodhya Ram Temple Today, SP Chief Akhilesh Yadav To Skip

    The speaker of the House invited Akhilesh Yadav to join them in Ayodhya during a budget discussion on Saturday, but the opposition leader said he would only go when Lord Shri Ram called him. 

  • Lok Sabha Polls: Congress demands 20 seats in Uttar Pradesh; Samajwadi Party finds it ‘unreasonable’

    Congress has sought 20 of 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh from Samajwadi Party, a demand which the regional party found ‘unreasonable’. The two parties are likely to meet again on Thursday to take talks forward, according to some leaders.

    According to people present at the second formal round of seat-sharing talks on Wednesday, Congress and SP discussed a seat-sharing formula and agreed ‘winnability’ should be the main criterion for deciding which party gets which seat. Congress won only Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat in 2019.

    A senior leader, who did not wish to be identified, told ET: “The exact number of seats were discussed. Congress has sought 20 seats. The list of seats was also discussed. Both parties have decided to meet again, and hold talks seat by seat.” There was no discussion on an alliance with BSP or RLD. A senior leader said, “RLD is Samajwadi Party’s ally. It is clear that any alliance talk of RLD will be with Samajwadi Party and not Congress.” RLD has already held talks with SP. Though Mayawati has announced that BSP would contest elections alone, Congress is keen on a grand alliance in UP because it feels that it is the only way the Opposition could give BJP a tough contest.In 2019, BJP secured 49.56% vote share, BSP 19.26%, SP 17.96% and Congress 6.31%. Though the influence of SP and BSP have declined considerably, a united Opposition could change the equation. Emerging from the meeting, senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid told journalists, “we held a good round of talks… We put forward our wish list before each other and compared the details of each seat with each other and we hope that from their side we will receive more feedback before we can reach a final discussion.” On questions regarding BSP’s inclusion, Khurshid said the leadership would handle it. He said Congress hoped that the alliance would be finalised before the Bharat Jodo Nyaya Yatra reaches UP.

    SP MP Ram Gopal Yadav said, “we have come halfway and will complete the entire journey soon.” UP Congress chief Ajay Rai and MLA Aradhana Mishra too joined the discussions. SP MP Javed Ali Khan, former SP MLC and a close aide of Akhilesh Yadav, Udaiveer Singh, and Ram Gopal Yadav represented SP. After the meeting with Congress, SP went into a huddle.

  • Banner at SP office hails Akhilesh Yadav as future PM; BJP says it is targeted at Oppn grouping

    By PTI

    LUCKNOW: A large banner describing Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav as the ‘future prime minister’ of the country has appeared outside the party office in the Uttar Pradesh capital, generating a buzz in political circles.

    Asked about it, SP national secretary and spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary told PTI, “This is the feeling of the workers. What else can be said about this?” The ruling BJP, however, described it as “Mungeri Lal ke haseen sapne (a pipedream)” of Yadav’s associates and an attempt to put pressure on other members of the INDIA opposition grouping.

    During the last few days, Yadav has publicly expressed his unhappiness with the Congress over the failure to arrive at a seat-sharing arrangement in Madhya Pradesh.

    #WATCH | Dehradun, Uttarakhand: On a poster of Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav symbolizing as ‘Future PM’, he says “…No one is going to become the Prime Minister just by putting posters. If any supporter has put up a poster, he is expressing what he wants. The goal of… pic.twitter.com/zuBoTCtsMF
    — ANI (@ANI) October 23, 2023
    “Hearty congratulations and best wishes on his birthday to the future Prime Minister of the country, respected Akhilesh Yadav ji,” the poster read, though Akhilesh Yadav’s official date of birth is July 1.

    Besides the picture of Akhilesh Yadav, the poster also carries the picture of party state spokesperson Fakhrul Hasan ‘Chand’, who earlier in July on the birthday of the SP chief had put up a similar banner outside the SP office.

    When asked if Akhilesh Yadav is a contender for the post of prime minister in the next Lok Sabha elections, Chaudhary said, “No, the party has never said so.”

    Hasan, however, said that party workers had wanted SP founder Mulayam Singh Yadav to be the prime minister of the country.

    “Now we hope that Akhilesh Yadav will fulfil that dream,” he said.

    “The route to the throne of Delhi goes through Uttar Pradesh and in this state, the Bharatiya Janata Party can be defeated only on the strength of SP. In such a situation, the parties included in the INDIA alliance should show big heart and make the SP chief a contender for the post of prime minister,” Hasan said.

    Reacting to the poster, BJP spokesperson Avaneesh Tyagi said, “Akhilesh Yadav has been totally rejected by the people of Uttar Pradesh and has no base in other states as well. His allies are continuously parting ways with him and under such circumstances, these are nothing but Mungeri Lal ke haseen sapne’ of his associates that are never going to see the light of the day. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to return to power for the third time for which people have already made up their mind. This is only a pressure tactic of the SP in the INDIA grouping and has no meaning whatsoever,” Tyagi claimed.

    Earlier in April this year, SP MLA from Lucknow-Central seat and former minister Ravidas Mehrotra had also said that Yadav should be a prime ministerial candidate. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp

    LUCKNOW: A large banner describing Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav as the ‘future prime minister’ of the country has appeared outside the party office in the Uttar Pradesh capital, generating a buzz in political circles.

    Asked about it, SP national secretary and spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary told PTI, “This is the feeling of the workers. What else can be said about this?” The ruling BJP, however, described it as “Mungeri Lal ke haseen sapne (a pipedream)” of Yadav’s associates and an attempt to put pressure on other members of the INDIA opposition grouping.

    During the last few days, Yadav has publicly expressed his unhappiness with the Congress over the failure to arrive at a seat-sharing arrangement in Madhya Pradesh.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    #WATCH | Dehradun, Uttarakhand: On a poster of Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav symbolizing as ‘Future PM’, he says “…No one is going to become the Prime Minister just by putting posters. If any supporter has put up a poster, he is expressing what he wants. The goal of… pic.twitter.com/zuBoTCtsMF
    — ANI (@ANI) October 23, 2023
    “Hearty congratulations and best wishes on his birthday to the future Prime Minister of the country, respected Akhilesh Yadav ji,” the poster read, though Akhilesh Yadav’s official date of birth is July 1.

    Besides the picture of Akhilesh Yadav, the poster also carries the picture of party state spokesperson Fakhrul Hasan ‘Chand’, who earlier in July on the birthday of the SP chief had put up a similar banner outside the SP office.

    When asked if Akhilesh Yadav is a contender for the post of prime minister in the next Lok Sabha elections, Chaudhary said, “No, the party has never said so.”

    Hasan, however, said that party workers had wanted SP founder Mulayam Singh Yadav to be the prime minister of the country.

    “Now we hope that Akhilesh Yadav will fulfil that dream,” he said.

    “The route to the throne of Delhi goes through Uttar Pradesh and in this state, the Bharatiya Janata Party can be defeated only on the strength of SP. In such a situation, the parties included in the INDIA alliance should show big heart and make the SP chief a contender for the post of prime minister,” Hasan said.

    Reacting to the poster, BJP spokesperson Avaneesh Tyagi said, “Akhilesh Yadav has been totally rejected by the people of Uttar Pradesh and has no base in other states as well. His allies are continuously parting ways with him and under such circumstances, these are nothing but Mungeri Lal ke haseen sapne’ of his associates that are never going to see the light of the day. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to return to power for the third time for which people have already made up their mind. This is only a pressure tactic of the SP in the INDIA grouping and has no meaning whatsoever,” Tyagi claimed.

    Earlier in April this year, SP MLA from Lucknow-Central seat and former minister Ravidas Mehrotra had also said that Yadav should be a prime ministerial candidate. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp

  • ‘Tried our best but…’: Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Kamal Nath on seat-sharing with Akhilesh Yadav

    By ANI

    BHOPAL (Madhya Pradesh): Speaking about the failure to arrive at a seat-sharing arrangement with Akhilesh Yadav in Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls, state Congress president Kamal Nath on Sunday said that he tried his best but could not convince “his people” about the seats the Samajwadi Party chief was demanding.

    “We talked, we tried our best, our people were not agreeing. Because the question was not how many seats, the question was which seats. We were not able to convince our people on the seats they wanted,” the Congress leader said.

    Nath’s remarks came after Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday said that his party extended support to the Congress to form their government in Madhya Pradesh not once but twice.

    “We had one MLA, we were at number two in five seats. At the time when Congress was in need, the Samajwadi Party was the first to support Congress. And the result was that the Congress government was formed in Madhya Pradesh. And even when the need arose again, the Samajwadi Party MLA supported the Congress without any conditions,” Akhilesh Yadav said while speaking to reporters here in Hardoi.

    In the 2018 Madhya Pradesh polls, the SP while contesting 52 seats, won one seat, Bijawar, and finished second on five, securing 1.30 per cent votes.

    Yadav’s party and Congress, among the parties who have vowed to put up a united front against the Bharatiya Janata Party in the ensuing Lok Sabha polls under the INDIA umbrella, are now at loggerheads in Madhya Pradesh after the latter didn’t allocate any seat to SP despite talks on seat sharing.

    Earlier on Thursday, Akhilesh Yadav said that, now, he came to know that the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance is only confined to the national level and that if Congress behaves like this, who will stand with them?

    “If Congress didn’t want to give seats (in MP), then they should have said it before. Today, SP is fighting only on seats. Now after Madhya Pradesh, I know that the INDIA alliance is for the (parliamentary) elections at the national level. If Congress continues to behave like this, then who will stand with them? If we will fight against the BJP with confusion in our minds, then we won’t succeed,” he had said.

    The BJP, monitoring the development closely, is taking a jibe at both parties saying that they (SP and Congress) have come together to fight at the national level but are wrestling among themselves in the states.

    Madhya Pradesh is scheduled to undergo assembly polls on November 17 and the counting of votes will take place on December 3.  Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp

    BHOPAL (Madhya Pradesh): Speaking about the failure to arrive at a seat-sharing arrangement with Akhilesh Yadav in Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls, state Congress president Kamal Nath on Sunday said that he tried his best but could not convince “his people” about the seats the Samajwadi Party chief was demanding.

    “We talked, we tried our best, our people were not agreeing. Because the question was not how many seats, the question was which seats. We were not able to convince our people on the seats they wanted,” the Congress leader said.

    Nath’s remarks came after Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday said that his party extended support to the Congress to form their government in Madhya Pradesh not once but twice.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    “We had one MLA, we were at number two in five seats. At the time when Congress was in need, the Samajwadi Party was the first to support Congress. And the result was that the Congress government was formed in Madhya Pradesh. And even when the need arose again, the Samajwadi Party MLA supported the Congress without any conditions,” Akhilesh Yadav said while speaking to reporters here in Hardoi.

    In the 2018 Madhya Pradesh polls, the SP while contesting 52 seats, won one seat, Bijawar, and finished second on five, securing 1.30 per cent votes.

    Yadav’s party and Congress, among the parties who have vowed to put up a united front against the Bharatiya Janata Party in the ensuing Lok Sabha polls under the INDIA umbrella, are now at loggerheads in Madhya Pradesh after the latter didn’t allocate any seat to SP despite talks on seat sharing.

    Earlier on Thursday, Akhilesh Yadav said that, now, he came to know that the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance is only confined to the national level and that if Congress behaves like this, who will stand with them?

    “If Congress didn’t want to give seats (in MP), then they should have said it before. Today, SP is fighting only on seats. Now after Madhya Pradesh, I know that the INDIA alliance is for the (parliamentary) elections at the national level. If Congress continues to behave like this, then who will stand with them? If we will fight against the BJP with confusion in our minds, then we won’t succeed,” he had said.

    The BJP, monitoring the development closely, is taking a jibe at both parties saying that they (SP and Congress) have come together to fight at the national level but are wrestling among themselves in the states.

    Madhya Pradesh is scheduled to undergo assembly polls on November 17 and the counting of votes will take place on December 3.  Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp

  • Akhilesh mellows down over alliance with Congress in MP, says ‘will support Congress if needed’

    Express News Service

    LUCKNOW: Amid the ongoing spat between the Samajwadi Party and Congress leaders over seat sharing in Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav sought to cool down the situation.

    While reiterating his disenchantment with the behaviour and attitude of Congress’s MP leadership, he said, “I have received someone’s message through the top Congress leader. If a leader of his stature is saying something, then I will have to go by it.”

    The SP chief, while responding with media persons in Hardoi over the knot in the Indian alliance, said, “If the Congress calls us and seeks our help, then SP won’t refuse. We will go by the earlier tradition andstrike the alliance with the grand old party.  We have backed Congress earlier also in MP to defeat the BJP,” adding that the Congress would have to clear its stand on the alliance.

    If INDIA could issue a list of (news) anchors to be boycotted, the same clarity could be maintained on other issues as well, he further added.

    On the contrary, the senior SP leader and party’s national general secretary and also Akhilesh’s uncle Ramgopal Yadav hit back at former MP CM and Congress stalwart Kamal Nath by calling him ‘chhutbhaiyya neta (ordinary leader).

    On Kamalnath’s “leave it brother Akhilesh-Vakhilesh” remark, Ramgopal said, “We have nothing to say on them, they are ordinary leaders.” Earlier, while reacting to Kamal Nath’s remarks and UP Congress President Ajay Rai’s statements, uncle Shivpal Yadav had also said that Congress should ban its small leaders from speaking.

    #WATCH उत्तर प्रदेश: समाजवादी पार्टी पर कमलनाथ समेत कांग्रेस नेताओं के बयानों के बारे में पूछे जाने पर जब सपा सांसद रामगोपाल यादव ने कहा, “हमें इनपर कुछ नहीं कहना है, ये छुटवइये नेता हैं।” pic.twitter.com/ZSecKshUGV
    — ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) October 21, 2023
    Akhilesh was left miffed and betrayed by the Congress’s attitude in MP. He failed to see any progress in prolonged meetings over tie-ups in MP if the opposition alliance did not include state elections and INDIA was stitched only for the Lok Sabha polls.

    He even threatened Congress to give a tit-for-tat treatment in UP where he claimed that no one but SP could give a tough fight to the ruling BJP. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp

    LUCKNOW: Amid the ongoing spat between the Samajwadi Party and Congress leaders over seat sharing in Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav sought to cool down the situation.

    While reiterating his disenchantment with the behaviour and attitude of Congress’s MP leadership, he said, “I have received someone’s message through the top Congress leader. If a leader of his stature is saying something, then I will have to go by it.”

    The SP chief, while responding with media persons in Hardoi over the knot in the Indian alliance, said, “If the Congress calls us and seeks our help, then SP won’t refuse. We will go by the earlier tradition and
    strike the alliance with the grand old party.  We have backed Congress earlier also in MP to defeat the BJP,” adding that the Congress would have to clear its stand on the alliance.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    If INDIA could issue a list of (news) anchors to be boycotted, the same clarity could be maintained on other issues as well, he further added.

    On the contrary, the senior SP leader and party’s national general secretary and also Akhilesh’s uncle Ramgopal Yadav hit back at former MP CM and Congress stalwart Kamal Nath by calling him ‘chhutbhaiyya neta (ordinary leader).

    On Kamalnath’s “leave it brother Akhilesh-Vakhilesh” remark, Ramgopal said, “We have nothing to say on them, they are ordinary leaders.” Earlier, while reacting to Kamal Nath’s remarks and UP Congress President Ajay Rai’s statements, uncle Shivpal Yadav had also said that Congress should ban its small leaders from speaking.

    #WATCH उत्तर प्रदेश: समाजवादी पार्टी पर कमलनाथ समेत कांग्रेस नेताओं के बयानों के बारे में पूछे जाने पर जब सपा सांसद रामगोपाल यादव ने कहा, “हमें इनपर कुछ नहीं कहना है, ये छुटवइये नेता हैं।” pic.twitter.com/ZSecKshUGV
    — ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) October 21, 2023
    Akhilesh was left miffed and betrayed by the Congress’s attitude in MP. He failed to see any progress in prolonged meetings over tie-ups in MP if the opposition alliance did not include state elections and INDIA was stitched only for the Lok Sabha polls.

    He even threatened Congress to give a tit-for-tat treatment in UP where he claimed that no one but SP could give a tough fight to the ruling BJP. Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp

  • Lucknow Diary: Now, Samajwadi Party to make temple run?

    Express News Service

    Now, Samajwadi Party to make temple run?As all political parties are getting into the poll mode in the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Samajwadi Party has planned to launch its campaign with a workers’ training camp at a prominent Hindu religious site, Naimisharanya in Sitapur district, 80 km from Lucknow. It will be a tryst with soft Hindutva for the Akhilesh Yadav-led party, which is perceived as the first choice of Muslim voters during the 2022 UP elections. The camp is likely to be held on June 9 and 10 to kickstart SP’s campaign. Party chief Yadav and other senior party leaders will start the camp by performing a ‘havan’.

    Who will be the next state police chief?As the state’s acting police chief RK Vishwakarma is set to retire today, the question that is again doing the rounds is whether the state will get a permanent DGP?  Not since Mukul Goyal was removed from the post about a year ago, it has had two ‘acting’ police chiefs — DS Chauhan and then Vishwakarma — who the government didn’t consider ‘fit for the job’. Now, as Vishwakarma retires, Goyal again leads the seniority list, followed by Anand Kumar and Vijay Kumar. They all have one-year tenure left. The question remains if the government will consider any of them. 

    BHU 2nd in IIRF ranking; AMU 3rd after JNUThe Banaras Hindu University (BHU) has brought another laurel to the state by being ranked second just behind Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in the recently released Central university rankings of the Indian Institutional Ranking Framework (IIRF). The other university to figure out just after BHU is Aligarh Muslim University. Another UP university has made it to the top 20, Ambedkar University, Lucknow. BHU has missed the top position narrowly, by just 0.17 points. The IIRF ranking is based on several parameters including teaching, research quality and productivity.

    Now, Samajwadi Party to make temple run?
    As all political parties are getting into the poll mode in the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Samajwadi Party has planned to launch its campaign with a workers’ training camp at a prominent Hindu religious site, Naimisharanya in Sitapur district, 80 km from Lucknow. It will be a tryst with soft Hindutva for the Akhilesh Yadav-led party, which is perceived as the first choice of Muslim voters during the 2022 UP elections. The camp is likely to be held on June 9 and 10 to kickstart SP’s campaign. Party chief Yadav and other senior party leaders will start the camp by performing a ‘havan’.

    Who will be the next state police chief?
    As the state’s acting police chief RK Vishwakarma is set to retire today, the question that is again doing the rounds is whether the state will get a permanent DGP?  Not since Mukul Goyal was removed from the post about a year ago, it has had two ‘acting’ police chiefs — DS Chauhan and then Vishwakarma — who the government didn’t consider ‘fit for the job’. Now, as Vishwakarma retires, Goyal again leads the seniority list, followed by Anand Kumar and Vijay Kumar. They all have one-year tenure left. The question remains if the government will consider any of them. 

    BHU 2nd in IIRF ranking; AMU 3rd after JNU
    The Banaras Hindu University (BHU) has brought another laurel to the state by being ranked second just behind Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in the recently released Central university rankings of the Indian Institutional Ranking Framework (IIRF). The other university to figure out just after BHU is Aligarh Muslim University. Another UP university has made it to the top 20, Ambedkar University, Lucknow. BHU has missed the top position narrowly, by just 0.17 points. The IIRF ranking is based on several parameters including teaching, research quality and productivity.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });