Tag: UP assembly elections

  • UP polls: Alleged Samajwadi Party goons attack Union Minister’s convoy in Karhal

    By PTI

    LUCKNOW: Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on Tuesday alleged that Union Minister S P Singh Baghel’s convoy was “attacked by Samajwadi Party goons” in Mainpuri district’s Karhal where he is contesting against Akhilesh Yadav.

    He claimed that with this “attack” on the Union minister, who is also the BJP’s candidate from Karhal Assembly segment, the Samajwadi Party chief has “ensured his defeat” in poll.

    According to Mainpuri police, some locals attacked Baghel’s convoy with stones and sticks when it was passing Atikullaha village.

    “The circle officer of Karhal is on the spot and an FIR is being lodged based on a complaint. The minister is safe and the law-and-order situation is normal,” it said.

    In a tweet in Hindi, Maurya said the “attack” on the convoy of Union Minister S P Singh Baghel “by Samajwadi Party goons” has shown the “real character of the party”.

    “Yesterday, BJP MP Geeta Shakya was also attacked. Strict action will be taken against the culprits of both the incidents,” he said.

    Maurya alleged that Akhilesh Yadav got Baghel and other BJP leaders attacked by “his pet goons” out of the fear of being defeated in his stronghold Karhal.

    “With the attack, you have ensured your defeat. Is this the new Samajwadi Party? Will you get those contesting against you attacked?” he posed in another tweet.

    BJP state president Swatantra Dev Singh also slammed the Samajwadi Party.

    “The attack on BJP candidate Baghel Ji shows that Akhilesh (Yadav) is going to taste defeat. The victory in elections is ensured due to blessings of the people and not by the terror of goons,” Singh tweeted.

    Karhal will go to the polls in the third phase on February 20.

  • Yogi, Akhilesh two sides of same coin: Owaisi attacks Samajwadi Party, BJP

    By PTI

    FARRUKHABAD: AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Sunday dubbed Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav as “two sides of the same coin”.

    Owaisi, the All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen chief and Hyderabad MP, made the remark while addressing an election rally here.

    “Yogi (Adityanath) and Akhilesh (Yadav) are two sides of the same coin,” said Owaisi while seeking votes for the candidates of Bhagidari Parivartan Morcha so that former UP minister Babu Singh Kushwaha could be made the UP CM.

    While likening Akhilesh Yadav to Yogi Adityanath, Owaisi did not explain how the two leaders were similar.

    He, however, had been asserting in the past that both Akhilesh Yadav and his father Mulayam Singh Yadav could become UP CMs on “charity votes” of 19 per cent Muslims, far outnumbering the votes of nine per cent Yadavs.

    The Bhagidari Parivartan Morcha was launched as a pre-poll alliance of AIMIM with little-known Jan Adhikar Party of former Uttar Pradesh minister Babu Singh Kushwaha and an all-India body of government employees of the backward, Dalits and minority community, founded by Kanshi Ram in the 1970s.

    Farrukhabad goes to the polls in the third phase of the seven-phase UP assembly elections and votes on February 20.

    While addressing the meeting, Owaisi termed elections as a battle for social justice and said, “We have to win this battle (for social justice) through voting.”

    Attacking the BJP, he accused the party of meting out step-motherly treatment to Farrukhabad district.

    Despite all the MLAs of the district belonging to the BJP, no development work was carried out by this double-engine government in the district, Owaisi alleged.

    Owaisi had launched the new pre-poll front, Bhagidari Parivartan Morcha on January 22, promising two chief ministers and three deputy chief ministers for Uttar Pradesh, if the new front is voted to power.

    Out of the two CMs, one will belong to the backward classes and the other to the Dalit community, he said, adding the state will also have three Dy CMs, with one belonging to the Muslim community.

    Owaisi, however, had offered no explanation under what provision of the Constitution he will have two CMs for a state.

  • UP polls: Unnao rape survivor’s mother confident of victory as Congress candidate

    By PTI

    UNNAO: Asserting that Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra wanted her to contest the Uttar Pradesh polls, the Unnao rape survivor on Thursday said since she is not old enough to fight elections, the party has fielded her mother from the Unnao Sadar Assembly segment for a cause.

    Asha Singh, the mother of the rape survivor, who has won her legal battle against former MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar, said she is contesting the polls to ensure justice for the victims of such a heinous crime.

    “Priyanka Gandhi wanted me to fight the election but it could not happen because I am not 25 years of age. So she gave the ticket to my mother,” said the rape survivor who is campaigning for her mother.

    She hoped that people would understand their pain and send her mother to the Assembly.

    Singh raised questions over the law-and-order situation in the state and said crime against women will only stop once the scenario improves.

    “Only then, no man, however strong he is, cannot look at a woman with wrong intentions. Our efforts will be to ensure this after winning the election,” she told PTI.

    Pankaj Gupta, who represents Unnao Sadar in the Assembly, has been fielded from the seat by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), while the Samajwadi Party (SP) has nominated Abhinav Kumar.

    The rape survivor and her mother, who were campaigning in Thana village at a distance of seven kilometers from the Unnao district headquarters, were surrounded by a posse of security personnel.

    Apart from the local Congress workers, those from the party’s Madhya Pradesh unit are also engaged in campaigning with the two women, who are going from house to house asking for votes.

    Renu Devi, a local resident, said people are impressed by the respect Priyanka Gandhi has given to the mother of the rape survivor.

    Singh fought a long battle to get justice for her daughter.

    She secured a life sentence for Sengar, who was the BJP MLA from Bangarmau.

    “What happened to my daughter should not happen with any daughter or sister. If I win the election, I will be the voice of the weaker section. I joined politics to get them justice,” the Congress candidate said.

    She said she is getting a massive support from people, especially women.

    Since Singh is not educated, her daughter and sister are also taking part in the election campaign with her.

    Talking to PTI, the rape survivor said, “Priyanka Gandhi understood our pain and gave us a chance to join politics.”

    Asked about the tragic incident, the Class-11 student said, “I suffered a lot of oppression to put the man who did wrong with me behind the bars. Now, no one, no matter how influential he is, can do any wrong to any daughter. He will think first before doing any misdeed because law is strict for everyone and justice can be delayed but not denied.”

    “Injustice should not happen to any other sister. I hope that the people of our district will understand our sorrow and pain and send my mother to the Assembly so that the voice of the downtrodden is heard,” she added.

    To a question on their strategy against seasoned politicians, she said they are fighting on the basis of truth.

    “We will win the election with the help of people. Difficulties will come, but we are not alone,” the rape survivor said.

    She said they have expanded the Congress’s “ladki hoon.” slogan as “ladki hoon, lad sakti hoon aur bahan-betiyon ko nyay dila sakti hoon (I am a girl, I can fight and ensure justice to sisters and daughters)”.

    She said the women of her village, Mankhi, say that they have learned a lot from her struggle.

    She said her sister is also campaigning for their mother by forming separate teams.

    Singh said, “My issue in the election is to protect the honour of the sisters and daughters, apart from opening good schools for girls, higher education, widening of roads, drinking water, construction of drains, providing means of employment to those unemployed.”

    On June 4, 2017, the rape survivor, who was still a minor, went to meet Sengar for a job.

    A few days later, she complained that the MLA had raped her.

    Police registered a case in the matter following a court order.

    The family of the rape survivor continued to receive threats even after the case was registered but did not gave up in their quest for justice.

    The probe in the case was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in April 2018.

    As the incident triggered nationwide outrage, the BJP expelled Sengar from the party.

    On December 19, 2019, Delhi’s Tis Hazari Court sentenced Sengar to life imprisonment for rape.

    After his conviction, the Uttar Pradesh Assembly cancelled Sengar’s membership and declared the Bangarmau seat vacant.

    In the bypoll held in November 2020, Shrikant Katiyar of the BJP won the seat.

  • Vote for farmers, not NOTA: Tikait brothers’ pre-poll appeal ahead of UP elections

    By PTI

    NOIDA: Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) president Naresh Tikait and its spokesperson Rakesh Tikait on Wednesday appealed to people to vote on farmers’ issues during the first phase of Uttar Pradesh assembly polls, beginning Thursday.

    Elections will be held in 58 assembly seats across 11 districts of western Uttar Pradesh, where the BKU, an influential farmers’ union of north India, holds a considerable sway among the farming community.

    “Not NOTA, but vote in the elections and hit the issues of farmers, I will be voting along with my family at 2 PM in Sisauli, you too join the mahayagya of democracy,” Naresh Tikait tweeted in Hindi.

    His younger brother Rakesh Tikait also put out a similar tweet except his polling booth is in Muzaffarnagar city and not in their ancestral village of Sisauli.

    Sisauli, the headquarters of the BKU, is in Muzaffarnagar district of western Uttar Pradesh.

    The BKU is part of the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), which had spearheaded the agitation against the now-repealed three central farm laws for over a year from November 2020.

    Rakesh Tikait, the spokesperson of the BKU, had emerged as a prominent face of the agitation and credited with reviving the agitation which had started waning post January 26, 2021 violence in Delhi.

    The Tikait brothers’ remark to “vote for farmers’ issues” assumes significance amid a much-talked about anti-BJP feeling in parts of western Uttar Pradesh in the wake of the farmers’ agitation during which over 700 people are claimed to have lost their lives.

    Naresh and Rakesh Tikait are sons of legendary farmer leader Mahendra Singh Tikait.

    Naresh Tikait is also the head of the Balyan Khap.

  • AAP candidate from Charthawal constituency joins Samajwadi Party on UP poll eve

    By PTI

    MUZAFFARNAGAR: A day before polling, the Aam Aadmi Party candidate from Charthawal assembly constituency, Yavar Roshan, on Wednesday resigned from the party and joined the Samajwadi Party.

    During the first phase of polling, the voting will start at 7 am on Thursday in 58 constituencies spread across 11 districts in the western part of Uttar Pradesh.

    Announcing his support for the SP candidate Pankaj Malik in Charthawal town in the Muzaffarnagar district, Roshan said he has resigned from the AAP.

    A video has gone viral on social media in which Roshan can be seen with the SP candidate at his election office, declaring that he has full faith in Samajwadi Party.

    Meanwhile, the Aam Aadmi Party has expelled Roshan from the party for indulging in anti-party activities.

    According to a press note released by the AAP’s district general secretary Tasawar Husain, the party has expelled Roshan from the AAP after he has personally announced to support SP candidate Malik in the election.

  • Oust BJP from UP to root it out at national level, Mamata urges voters 

    Express News Service

    LUCKNOW: Having joined the poll campaign in support of Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee urged the people of Uttar Pradesh to oust the BJP from the state to remove it from the Centre.

    Addressing a joint virtual rally with SP chief Akhilesh Yadav here on Tuesday, the West Bengal CM cautioned the people of Uttar Pradesh against wasting their vote on the BJP in the coming UP Assembly elections.

    Seeking votes in favour of the Akhilesh Yadav-led alliance, Mamata said SP was the only alternative to BJP in UP. She exhorted the people of Uttar Pradesh to oust the BJP from UP in order to root it out at the national level. “UP has a vast history. It has given the majority of PMs to the nation. If the BJP is defeated in UP, then it won’t survive at the national level. So vote dedicatedly against the BJP in UP,” said Banerjee.

    The Trinamool Congress chief slammed UP CM Yogi Adityanath for alleged mismanagement of Covid-19 in the state, especially during the second wave.

    ALSO READ | UP polls: PM Narendra Modi pitches development agenda, accuses previous state governments of loot

    She claimed that when people were suffering during the second wave of COVID in UP, CM Yogi was campaigning in West Bengal to defeat her, last year. “So you had come to Bengal to defeat us…where were you when people were dying of Covid,” she said.

    Accusing the state authorities under CM Yogi of failing to provide wood to people to perform the last rites of their loved ones who lost the battle of life toCOVID, Mamata asked whether the UP government didn’t have woods to cremate them. “We revere Ganga Ma. And here you threw dead bodies in Ganga. Many dead bodies floated to Bengal. We picked up those bodies and respectfully cremated them. Did you not have wood to cremate the bodies?” she asked.

    Mamata Banerjee arrived in Lucknow on Monday evening in a show of support to the SP-led alliance contesting the assembly elections.

    Mocking at the BJP’s Sankalp Patra released on Tuesday, the West Bengal CM wondered if it was a manifesto or “Moneyfesto”. The BJP had planned to release its manifesto on Sunday but deferred it by two days as a mark of respect to legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar who passed away on Sunday morning.

    Banerjee said that the saffron party released its manifesto on Tuesday on hearing that she would be in Lucknow.

    Raking up the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case, the TMC leader asked the BJP to seek forgiveness over the incident in which a Union minister’s son is accused of running over the SUV on protesting farmers.

    Meanwhile, talking to media persons in the same interaction, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav took a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cancelled physical rally in Bijnor due to weather conditions, saying that the weather was bad for the BJP. “BJP’s plane will not land in UP now,” he said.

  • ‘What compulsion do you have?’: Smriti slams Akhilesh for seeking Mamata’s support

    By PTI

    NOIDA: BJP leader Smriti Irani on Monday hit out at Akhilesh Yadav, wondering why the Samajwadi Party president was seeking support of Trinamool Congress supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who had “insulted” the people of Uttar Pradesh.

    While addressing a poll programme in Gautam Buddh Nagar’s Jewar, the Union Minister claimed Yadav’s reach out to Banerjee was an indication that he is “not getting people’s support on his own strength”.

    Irani claimed Yadav was seeking support from Banerjee despite her insulting the traditions, culture and food habits of the people of Uttar Pradesh.

    “I want to ask Akhilesh ji, what has happened now that you want support of those who had forgotten the glorious past of this state and openly insult the residents of the state. What compulsion do you have?” she said.

    “But Akhilesh ji is definitely giving indications that he is not getting public support on his own strength,” she added.

    Irani was addressing a gathering in support of BJP’s Jewar MLA Dhirendra Singh, who is once again in the fray from the seat for assembly polls.

    The Lok Sabha MP from Amethi said it was her good luck that she has been elected to parliament from Uttar Pradesh, which has been not only known as the land that has defined ‘sanskar, sanskriti’ but is also the land which is redefining development in India’s politics.

    Quoting the remarks of MLA Singh, she said the BJP has accomplished in five years in Jewar what could not be done even in 70 years.

    “It’s not easy that an international-level airport gets built in an assembly area or a medical device park for manufacturing modern equipment,” she said, talking of the big ticket projects Jewar has got since the BJP came to power in Uttar Pradesh in 2017.

    Polls in Gautam Buddh Nagar in western Uttar Pradesh are scheduled for February 10 during the first phase of elections in the state.

    Results will be declared on March 10.

  • Previous UP governments were not concerned with people’s needs: PM Modi

    Modi said the people of Uttar Pradesh have decided that development will be the biggest issue in the upcoming assembly elections.

  • Government accepts ED officer Rajeshwar Singh’s VRS; may contest UP polls on BJP ticket

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Enforcement Directorate officer Rajeshwar Singh has been granted voluntary retirement from service (VRS) by the Union government.

    He is expected to join the BJP and contest the upcoming Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh.

    Singh, who was serving as the joint director of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Lucknow so far, tweeted to announce that he was ‘hanging up his boots’.

    “Today my request for voluntary retirement (VRS) from the service of Government of India has been approved. The caravan of 24 years of tireless and conscientious hard work, carried out in a relentless manner, has reached a point of transition today,” he stated in a letter attached with the Twitter post on Monday night.

    The officer began his civil service career with the Uttar Pradesh Police, where he served for about 10 years while the rest were in the ED, a federal probe agency that investigates money laundering and foreign exchange violation crimes.

    “As my professional journey of 24 years turns to a transition today, on this occasion, I express my deep seated gratitude to the Hon PM Shri @narendramodi ji, Hon HM Shri @AmitShah ji and FM Smt @nsitharaman ji, CM Shri @myogiadityanath ji, Shri S K Mishra, Director ED and Uttar Pradesh Police. I have learned a lot while working with these organizations for so many years.”

    “I join the PM’s mission to make India a Vishwa Guru, as a participant, to contribute with conviction and integrity in this process of nation-building,” he said.

    The officer had applied for VRS late last year.

    Sources said he may contest the Uttar Pradesh polls on a BJP ticket.

    A B.Tech and PhD in police, human rights and social justice, Singh joined the ED in 2007 on deputation.

    He was permanently absorbed into the ED cadre in 2014 and has headed some high-profile investigations into the 2G spectrum allocation case, the 2010 Commonwealth Games, the money laundering cases against former Union finance minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram, Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy and former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda, the Aircel Maxis and VVIP choppers case.

    Assets worth about Rs 4,000 crore were attached in his probes.

    “I am deeply satisfied that despite various threats and pressure tactics from unscrupulously corrupt leaders, my courage to do my job without bowing down has been appreciated time and again by the Hon’ble Supreme Court,” he stated.

    The officer has had a share of controversies, including an instance in June 2018, when the Finance Ministry submitted a secret report to the Supreme Court, apparently carrying details of a phone call received by the officer from Dubai.

    The report is said to have been prepared by country’s external intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing and handed over to the Department of Revenue in the Finance Ministry, under which the ED functions.

    The then ED director Karnal Singh had issued a press statement saying the overseas call received by Rajeshwar Singh pertained to an “ongoing investigation” and that he was a responsible officer with outstanding career records.

    The government had also launched an investigation against Rajeshwar Singh for his letter in which he had made a scathing attack on the then revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia questioning him if the latter had developed animosity against him by “siding with scamsters and their affiliates.”

    Rajeshwar Singh was subsequently issued a notice seeking an explanation for alleged “insubordination” in the context of this letter by the revenue department, to which he has replied with a “regret” and had explained his side of the story.

    That letter, sources had said, was sent through “official channels” to the agency’s chief Karnal Singh but it was never forwarded to Adhia.

    Accusations of certain other alleged irregularities made against Singh were probed by the ED, the CBI and the Central Vigilance Commission, and a report was sent to the court and the government stating that there was “no merit” in the allegations and hence the inquiry was closed.

    Singh, who carried out numerous encounters during his stint in the uniform, is married to IPS officer Laxmi Singh, who is currently serving as the Inspector General of Lucknow police range.

  • After farm reforms, now Yogi invokes ‘blood of Karsevaks’ to attack Akhilesh

    By PTI

    LUCKNOW: The Samajwadi Party’s red caps are painted in the blood of victims of Muzaffarnagar riots and ‘karsewaks’ shot dead in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said.

    Attacking the SP in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Adityanath, have been repeatedly targeting the party’s red cap.

    “The red cap of the Samajwadi Party is painted in the blood of victims of Muzaffarnagar riots and karsewaks who were shot in Ayodhya,” Adityanath said while speaking at an event organised by a channel on Saturday evening.

    Addressing a rally in Gorakhpur in December last year, Modi had targeted the SP, saying those in red caps were a “red alert” and “sign of danger” for the state, while Adityanath had in February last year, said every child sees those wearing red caps as “goons”.

    The chief minister said his government has been working to protect the masses and instil a sense of safety among them while ensuring that “criminals feel scared” and surrender before police with folded hands.

    Accusing the previous SP government of neglecting the poor people of the state, the chief minister alleged that the Akhilesh Yadav-led government worked only for a few friends involved in perfume business.

    “They can deny (allegations) but can’t change what is true,” he said.

    “They (SP) never considered Uttar Pradesh and its people as their own. Their views are family-centric and Pakistan-centric. Before 2017, riots used to occur every third day in the state and girls use to fear for their safety. This has changed under the BJP rule,” Adityanath said.

    Claiming that his government has provided a new identity to Uttar Pradesh, he said, “Now businessmen and people are not forced to migrate from the state. Businessmen are now returning to the state and contributing to its development.”

    Reacting to accusations that the BJP government has targeted the people of a particular religion and why over 80 cases were lodged against SP leader Azam Khan, Adityanath said, “Our government has not lodged any politically motivated FIR against anyone.”

    “The cases against Azam Khan are a result of his wrongdoings. If anyone tries to encroach land belonging to the poor and build an institution there, then action will be taken against that person,” he said “Our government has provided benefits to people from every caste and background. In SP, BSP and Congress governments, the leaders use to build their house first. This has changed in our government. We have worked to provide a house to every family in the state,” he said.

    On sugarcane farmers in western Uttar Pradesh, the CM said, “The Samajwadi Party sold several sugar mills at throwaway prices. Our government has not only ensured smooth functioning of sugar mills but have also established new ones. The SP lacks vision for the development of the state.”

    He said the “double engine” government has taken the state to new heights of development in the last five years.

    The term “double engine” is used by BJP leaders to refer to the party being in power at the Centre as well as in a state.

    “The work done by us has given recognition to the state not only in the country but across the world,” he added.

    Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday assured farmers in Uttar Pradesh that in the event of delay in payment of sugarcanes, they will get the money along with interest.

    He said this announcement will be part of the BJP election manifesto.

    “We have decided to announce in the BJP manifesto that in case of delay in clearance of payments, interest will be realised from sugar mills, and farmers will be paid the money along with interest,” Shah said while addressing “matdaatas” (voters) here.

    The minister said farmers in some regions of the state told him about the delay in sugarcane payment.

    Targetting Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav over the farmers issue, Shah said there were 42 sugar mills, of which 21 mills were closed by the SP and BSP.

    “Whereas during our time, none was closed and payments to farmers were made,” he asserted.

    Uttar Pradesh tops in production of sugarcane and the western region of the state is known for cultivating the crop in bulk.

    The opposition parties have been raising the issue of non-payment of cane prices to farmers while attacking the ruling BJP in the state.

    Uttar Pradesh will go to polls in seven phases beginning February 10.

    BJP president J P Nadda on Saturday launched a scathing attack on Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav saying those who never did any good for the farmers are moving around with a handful of grains making pledges.

    His apparent target was Yadav’s ‘ann sankalp’ (food commitment), the Samajwadi Party’s resolve for the welfare of the farmers, a crucial vote bank in the state.

    Akhilesh Yadav has made several promises to the farmers of Uttar Pradesh, including MSP for every crop, free irrigation facilities, payment of arrears to cane-growers in 15 days, interest-free loans, and insurance and pension if his party-led alliance comes to power.

    At a public rally in Etawah, Nadda said, “Those who never did any good for the farmers are today moving around with a handful of grains. Akhilesh Yadav should tell the people of Uttar Pradesh what had done for the farmers during the five years of his rule (2012-2017).”

    “Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the government of Yogi Adityanath waived the worth Rs 36,000 crore loans of 86 lakh farmers. Over 10 crore farmers of the country have got Rs 1.80 lakh crore under the Kisan Samman Nidhi, of which 2.5 crore are from Uttar Pradesh,” the BJP national president said.

    He asserted that Uttar Pradesh was the number one in producing sugarcane, sugar, potato and green peas.

    “In five years, our double engine government has given Rs 1.48 lakh crore to sugarcane farmers, which is more than the payments made during the rule of the SP and BSP. We have also cleared the dues accumulated during the Akhilesh Yadav government.”

    “In the governments of the SP and BSP, 21 sugar mills were shut down, while in our government, three new sugar mills were opened and there has been an expansion of some sugar mills,” Nadda said.

    Sharpening the attack at Akhilesh Yadav, the BJP chief said the Samajwadi Party “sprinkles perfume” while the Yogi Adityanath government work for development.

    He was referring to the ‘Samajwadi perfume’ that was launched by Yadav in November last year with a “hope of spreading the scent of socialism” in the state.

    “Akhilesh Ji, no matter how much perfume you sprinkle to hide the wrongdoings, good smell will not emanate. Of the SP candidates declared some are fighting from jail, while others are on bail.”

    “What is the compulsion that his friendship with the mafia and criminals is still intact,” Nadda wondered, adding, “They cannot break their friendship with the mafia and criminals, because that is the identity of the Samajwadi Party.”

    Training his guns at the Bahujan Samaj Party, the BJP president alleged that if the Mayawati-led party comes to power then there would be “development of a caste.”

    “When the Samajwadi Party comes to power, then along with casteism crime also makes its presence felt. We have during BSP and SP governments that people from one particular caste were selected in recruitment examinations. Our government worked for the welfare of people without any appeasement with a focus on ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikaas (with all, development for all).”

    The BJP national president undertook a house-to-house campaign in Bareilly and offered prayers at the Barha Baagh Hanumaan Mandir, the party said in a statement.