Tag: Akhilesh Yadav

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INDIA 2024 India News Politics

Akhilesh names Tej Pratap as Kannauj candidate

The Samajwadi Party set at rest speculation about its president Akhilesh Yadav contesting the Lok Sabha elections….reports Asian Lite News

Putting an end to the speculations of Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav contesting from Uttar Pradesh’s Kannauj, the party has fielded Tej Pratap Singh Yadav from the parliamentary seat.

The seat was once represented by party chief Akhilesh Yadav and his wife Dimple.

Tej Pratap, a former MP from Mainpuri and nephew of Akhilesh Yadav is also the son-in-law of RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav. He is married to Lalu’s daughter Raj Laxmi Yadav.

Tej Pratap is the grandson of late SP founder Mulayam Singh Yadav’s brother Ranveer Singh. He was Mainpuri MP from 2014 to 2019.

Now apart from Tej Pratap, the Yadav family members are contesting from Mainpuri, Azamgarh, Badaun and Ferozabad Lok Sabha seats.

The Party has fielded Sanatan Pandey from Ballia against BJP’s Neeraj Shekhar.

Pandey had earlier too contested from here in 2019 on the SP ticket but lost to BJP’s Virendra Singh Mast.

Neeraj Shekhar, the son of former Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar, was a Lok Sabha MP from 2007 to 2014, representing SP from Ballia, the constituency earlier held by his father.

In 2014, Shekhar lost the polls to his BJP rival and was nominated to the Rajya Sabha.

He was not fielded by the SP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections after that, he quit the SP and joined the BJP which sent him to the Upper House of Parliament.

Ballia Lok Sabha constituency will go to polls on June 1.

In the 2019 general elections, the BJP emerged triumphant, securing 62 out of 80 seats, supplemented by two seats clinched by its ally Apna Dal (S). Mayawati’s BSP managed to secure 10 seats, while Akhilesh Yadav’s SP garnered five. Conversely, the Congress party secured only one seat.

Meanwhile, SP Chief Akhilesh Yadav on Monday lashed out at the BJP and PM Modi accsuing them of not having respect for the constitution.

“The lies that the people in the highest positions in the BJP are spreading against the Congress by saying absurd things in the election rallies are exposing the lies of the BJP itself. On one hand, they are claiming that they are going to win by getting 400 seats; on the other hand, they want to get some votes in the election by scaring the public by saying what will happen if the opposition wins…..The truth is that the middle class, who have one or two pieces of jewelry, is also voting against the BJP because the middle and lower middle class people are also affected by unemployment and inflation,” he said in a post on X.

“Saying wrong things about a particular community by naming it is an insult to that community spread across the world. At the international level, this has hurt the secular and democratic identity of the country. This is a very objectionable statement, which cannot be forgiven….Only those who have the intention of destroying the Constitution can use such unconstitutional language,” Akhilesh Yadav added. (ANI)

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INDIA 2024 India News Politics

Why are country’s borders shrinking, asks Akhilesh 

Yadav highlighted concerns about law and order, unemployment, press freedom, healthcare, and poverty levels…reports Asian Lite News

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, in a thinly veiled critique of the BJP-led central government, questioned the state of affairs in the country, particularly focusing on the shrinking borders and the state of press freedom.

Speaking at Aishbagh Eidgah on Eid-ul-Fitr, Yadav highlighted concerns about law and order, unemployment, press freedom, healthcare, and poverty levels.

While refraining from naming any specific party or individual, Yadav emphasized that voters are cognizant of these issues and are poised to bring about change through the upcoming elections.

Meanwhile, the Congress took aim at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s response to China’s border transgressions, labeling it as “ineffective and feeble.”

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh criticized Modi’s remarks in an interview with Newsweek magazine, describing them as “cowardly.” In the interview, Modi stressed the importance of stable relations between India and China and expressed hope for peaceful resolution through diplomatic and military engagement.

However, the Congress demanded an apology from Modi for his previous statement in June 2020, where he denied any Chinese intrusion into Indian territory.

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‘Keep party together’ is Akhilesh’s biggest challenge in future

Akhilesh chose the ‘outsiders’ over his loyal partymen when it came to ticket distribution and this led to his cadres retiring into their shells…reports Asian Lite News

For Samajwadi Party (SP) President Akhilesh Yadav, one journey has ended and another has just begun.

In the recently-held Assembly elections, he may have more than doubled the number of seats his party had won in 2017 and the vote percentage also spiked one and a half times, but the challenges that lie ahead for the 48-year-old leader have also increased manifold.

The biggest challenge for Akhilesh in the coming months would be to keep his party together.

Five years is a long time and not many of the newly elected legislators would be in the mood to struggle against the establishment for this period.

Besides keeping the legislature party intact, Akhilesh will also have to work overtime to prevent an exodus from his party — the kind that he had encouraged from other parties before the elections.

The SP is almost brimming over with turncoats and there is no guarantee that such elements will not turn away again.

These turncoats, interestingly, are a major reason for the SP’s below expectation performance.

Akhilesh chose the ‘outsiders’ over his loyal partymen when it came to ticket distribution and this led to his cadres retiring into their shells.

The defeat of Swami Prasad Maurya and Dharam Singh Saini, both of whom came from the BJP, is an example.

Akhilesh will now have to constantly boost the morale of his party workers and reassure them that the party has a future in state politics.

While keeping his OBC vote bank intact, the SP chief also needs to expand his vote base.

In the midst of elections, Akhilesh damaged himself to a large extent when he said in Pratapgarh — “Raja Bhaiyya kaun?”

Raja Bhaiyya, in at least six districts of the Avadh region, is an icon for the Thakur community.

Akhilesh’s uncalled for remark made sure that the Thakurs did not vote for and support the SP, leading to the defeat of the party’s Thakur leaders like Arvind Singh Gope.

Raja Bhaiyya, incidentally had helped Akhilesh’s father Mulayam Singh cobble together a majority for his government in 2003 and has served as a minister in the Mulayam and Akhilesh governments.

Akhilesh also targeted Dhananjay Singh, another well-known Thakur leader, who was contesting from Malhani in Jaunpur.

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Though Dhananjay also lost the polls, it added to the Thakur angst against the SP.

If the SP wants to broad base itself, it cannot afford to remain restricted to select OBC groups and completely ignore the upper castes.

Akhilesh, as a political leader, is known for his short temper and lack of restraint that was rather visible during the election campaign.

His “Ae police” remark in Kannauj during the campaign went viral on the social media and attracted a great deal of flak. He is also known to snap at leaders in public which apparently does not go down well.

Another factor that could prove to be his undoing is his inaccessibility to party workers, leaders and journalists.

“He will meet you only if he wants to. If you have some information that you want to pass on to him, he will never be available. In this sense, his behaviour is becoming autocratic like Mayawati,” said a senior party MLA.

There is no channel which can help him take feedback on a regular basis about what is happening at the ground level in the party and elsewhere.

Party leaders recall that Mulayam Singh Yadav, in total contrast, would readily meet party workers even late in the night if there was an urgent issue.

“His staff was instructed never to turn us back and Netaji (Mulayam) would meet us whenever we wanted,” said a former MLA from Ballia.

Another major challenge before Akhilesh is that he has failed to develop fresh leadership within his party even though it is five years since he took over the reins.

As a result, he was leading a one-man army with no other campaigners whereas the BJP had an army of campaigners — right from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to Union ministers, MPs, and state ministers.

Moreover, the SP president needs to get himself some reliable advisors and replace his present coterie that comprises of inexperienced ‘leaders’.

Akhilesh is seemingly unwilling to allow older leaders to share centre stage. Though he patched up with his estranged uncle Shivpal Yadav on the eve of the elections, he ensured that Shivpal did not get the attention he deserves.

Other senior leaders like Ambica Chaudhary were also conspicuous by their absence during the campaign.

ALSO READ: Akhilesh alleges malpractices before counting in Uttar Pradesh

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India News Uttar Pradesh

UP has four Akhilesh Yadavs contesting in fourth phase

The three namesakes of the SP president are now waiting to see whether their luck matches Akhilesh Yadav’s luck when counting is held on March 10…reports Asian Lite News

What does a Congress candidate from Bikapur in Ayodhya, an independent from Gunnaur in Sambhal, Samajwadi Party candidates from Mubarakpur in Azamgarh and Karhal in Mainpuri have in common — they are all Akhilesh Yadavs.

While SP president Akhilesh Yadav is contesting from Karhal and is being seen as a chief ministerial candidate, his namesakes are also basking in reflected glory.

“I am getting good support in my constituency. People feel sympathetic towards me. I had lost the 2017 polls by a very thin margin. But now, they want Akhilesh Yadav to win. People say that one Akhilesh Yadav will be chief minister and Akhilesh Yadav should also be Mubarakpur’s MLA,” said Akhilesh Yadav from Mubarakpur.

When his name was announced from Mubarakpur, many thought that the SP president was contesting form two seats — Karhal and Mubarakpur.

Mubarakpur in Azamgarh district goes to polls in the seventh phase on March 7.

Congress candidate from Bikapur and the party’s Ayodhya district president Akhilesh Yadav said he joined the Congress in 2016 after moving out of the SP as he was not given respect.

He said, “A few days back, I was campaigning with my supporters in Bikapur. One of my supporters shouted ‘Akhilesh bhaiyya zindabaad’. This prompted some SP supporters, who were in the vicinity to raise slogans in my support.”

Later, they realised that they are actually raising slogans in favour of a Congress candidate, Yadav said.

“Some people also wonder how come the ‘haath kaa panjaa’ (Congress’ poll symbol) has become the SP election symbol,” Yadav said.

Independent candidate Akhilesh Yadav is testing the poll waters from Gunnaur in Sambhal district, which has already gone to polls. He said that though he was born with the name Lakhvendra Singh, his grandmother used to call him ‘Akhilesh’, and gradually others also started calling him by that name. “Akhilesh Yadav (the SP chief) is everything for us. Samajwadi (socialism) flows in our blood and it is in our genes. My father Ram Khiladi Singh is SP candidate,” he said.

The three namesakes of the SP president are now waiting to see whether their luck matches Akhilesh Yadav’s luck when counting is held on March 10.

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India News Politics

Karhal will be no cakewalk for Akhilesh

Karhal is considered to be a Samajwadi bastion and since 1993, the SP has never lost the election here….reports Asian Lite News

For Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, contesting elections from Karhal will no longer be a cakewalk and this, the BJP has made sure by fielding Union Minister S.P. Singh Baghel from here.

Though the caste equation is completely tilted in favour of Akhilesh, the BJP is banking on non-Yadav OBCs for support.

There is an estimated 1.4 lakh Yadavs of the total 3.7 lakh voters in the Karhal constituency,

The Dalit votes in the constituency are around 70,000 and the BJP arithmetic is to play the ‘Hindu First’ card and erase the caste lines between Dalits and non-Yadav OBCs.

Karhal is considered to be a Samajwadi bastion and since 1993, the SP has never lost the election here.

Located about five kilometres from Sefai, the native village of Akhilesh Yadav, Karhal has a strong emotional connect with the Yadav family.

Dhanraj Yadav, a local teacher, says, “Apart from the Yadav factor which dominates undoubtedly, people know that by voting for Akhilesh, they are electing a chief minister and it is this that is making all the difference. The Yadav family has always been with the people and we reach out to them with our problems.”

The BJP candidate, S.P. Singh Baghel, 61, will be challenging a member of the Yadav family for the third time in the electoral battle from Karhal.

Baghel has unsuccessfully contested against Akhilesh Yadav in 2009, Dimple Yadav in 2009 (bypoll) and Akshay Yadav in 2014 from Firozabad.

Baghel, incidentally was in the security of Mulayam Singh Yadav when he was sub-inspector with the Uttar Pradesh Police and it was Mulayam who had ushered him into politics.

Sushil Tyagi, a local resident, said, “Baghel is a betrayer. Why does he have to contest against the family which made him what he is today. He would have just been another policeman on the streets if Netaji (Mulayam) had not ushered him into politics. The people in Karhal are emotionally connected with the Yadav family and Baghel’s candidate is not being looked upon very kindly.”

Nevertheless, BJP cadres are working overtime to campaign door-to-door for Baghel and bring down the victory margin of Akhilesh.

“We want to ensure that Akhilesh remains pinned to this constituency and fight for the margin. You never know, he may even bite dust if Dalits join hands with non-Yadav OBCs here,” said a BJP functionary.

Baghel belongs to the Dhangar sub caste in Dalits and is confident of getting the Dalit votes.

ALSO READ: BJP’s sun will start setting: Akhilesh

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India News Politics

Akhilesh announces sops for farmers, takes pledge to defeat BJP

Yadav said that all this would be included in the Samajwadi manifesto which would be released after the BJP released its manifesto…reports Asian Lite News

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, on Monday, said that when his party comes to power, he would ensure minimum support price for all crops for farmers.

He said that he would create a farmers’ revolving fund to ensure payment of cane dues besides making adequate arrangements for ensuring free irrigation, loan, pension and insurance for them. He also said that he would withdraw all cases lodged against farmers and the families of those who had died during the agitation would be given Rs 25 lakhs each.

Yadav said that all this would be included in the Samajwadi manifesto which would be released after the BJP released its manifesto.

Farmer leader Tajinder Virk, who was among those injured in the October 3, 2021 Lakhimpur incident, administered a pledge with fistful of wheat and rice to defeat ‘those who had heaped atrocities on farmers.’

Comparing the Lakhimpur incident with the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, Akhilesh Yadav said that by mowing down innocent farmers, the BJP had committed an unpardonable crime.

He said that it was the unity of farmers that had forced the BJP to take back the farm laws.

The SP president further said that the BJP and its leaders had been openly violating the model code of conduct. He said that he would soon lodge a formal complaint with the Election Commission and hoped that they would take action accordingly.

Replying to a question on the failure of alliance talks with Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar, Akhilesh Yadav said that he had offered two seats but does not know why the same was turned down.

“Chandra Shekhar should know that Dr Ambedkar and Dr Lohia worked together and he should also work together in a positive spirit with us and as a brother,” he said.

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SPECIAL: Tough Task Ahead For Akhilesh

For the first time in his two-decade long political career, Akhilesh is leading a campaign single-handedly with almost no back-up mechanism in the party….reports Asian Lite News

Swelling crowds, enthused cadres, increasing ground support and a cleverly stitched up alliance may seem a perfect recipe for elections for the Samajwadi Party, but this picture perfect cannot hide the challenges that Akhilesh Yadav faces in the 2022 polls.

For the first time in his two-decade long political career, Akhilesh is leading a campaign single-handedly with almost no back-up mechanism in the party.

Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav is conspicuous by his absence from the campaign and his health issues may not permit him to address more than one or two meetings.

In 2012, when Akhilesh led his party to a comfortable majority, he was firmly backed by his father, while he travelled across the state.

Mulayam would carefully chart his programme, identify leaders who would accompany him and also decide on issues that had to be addressed in different regions.

This time, Akhilesh is the sole campaigner and star attraction of his party and this naturally adds to the challenge and the burden.

Since he took over as the party president in 2017, Akhilesh has not allowed second rung leadership in the party to develop and, today, he runs a one-man army with not even his cousins taking part in the political exercise.

The Samajwadi Party also lacks mature leaders who can deal with situations in the absence of Akhilesh.

Party veterans have either passed away — like Beni Prasad Varma, Bhagwati Singh — or are completely side-lined.

The BJP, on the other hand, has a galaxy of campaigners that simultaneously hold fort. On any given day — as elections draw close — there are, at least, six BJP leaders addressing meetings in the state.

Another challenge that Akhilesh faces is to rein in overzealous party workers. Buoyed up by the people’s response in Akhilesh’s rallies, the untamed cadres often go overboard leading to major embarrassments for the party.

For instance, a group of party workers in Kanpur were arrested on Wednesday for attempting to create ruckus during the Prime Minister’s visit on Tuesday. As the BJP underlined the incident as an example of ‘SP’s goondaism’, Akhilesh was compelled to expel the five party workers.

Akhilesh also faces the challenge of striking a perfect balance between his Muslim and Hindu supporters.

The BJP has forced him to abandon the policy of Muslim appeasement — or at least, not be vocal about it — and peddle soft Hindutva.

As Akhilesh cautiously moves ahead, trying to balance the two ideologies, his Muslim leaders tend to act as irritants.

For instance, the recent statements made by SP MPs Shafiqur — Rehman Barq and S.T. Hasan, embarrassed the SP to such an extent that Akhilesh was forced to disassociate himself from his own MPs.

Meanwhile, as the time for ticket distribution draws near, Akhilesh will also face a situation when he will have to handle discontent within his own party.

Seats that are given away to multiple allies, will leave the SP workers on these seats simmering with anger. The party could face internal sabotage and it will be testing time for Akhilesh to deal with the situation because the SP leaders have been working for five years in their respective constituencies to contest elections.

Akhilesh has never dabbled in coalition politics and his new allies like Om Prakash Rajbhar, are known to drive a hard bargain in politics. How he keeps all his allies in good humour, remains to be seen.

Another problem that Akhilesh has is his inaccessibility. He mostly remains unavailable to party workers and also the media and no one in the party is authorised to take a call on his behalf.

Unlike Akhilesh, Mulayam Singh Yadav — despite his advancing years, still picks up the phone on random basis and talks to senior journalists and party workers, especially old timers.

It is this that keeps still Mulayam clued into ground realities and also tuned in to emerging situations.

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Akhilesh is daydreaming, says UP Dy CM

The lotus will bloom again in the state and BJP will form the next government with a huge majority… Keshav Prasad Maurya speaks with Santosh Kumar Pathak.

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya has said that Samajwadi Party chief and former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav is day dreaming of coming to power in the state. He said that the BJP will again get more than 300 seats in the next Assembly polls in the state.

Here are excerpts of the interview:

You met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Parliament House. What did you discuss with him?

I had requested a meeting with the Prime Minister, which he accepted. I had a pleasant meeting with him at his office in the Parliament House, got blessings and also some tips for the 2022 Assembly polls. Just like PM Modi again formed a government at the Centre in 2019, we will also do it in 2022.

Whether it is the poll preparations or other political programs in Varanasi, what is the message BJP is trying to give through the holy city?

Kashi is the city of Baba Vishwanath. As the PM had said, he was called by mother Ganga, the people of Kashi blessed him and chose him as their MP twice. Under his leadership, the country is progressing fast, Uttar Pradesh is also developing and Kashi too is also on the path of development. The development of Kashi should also be on religious and spiritual lines. We are proud that the grand corridor of Baba Vishwanath is ready in Kashi and the Prime Minister will dedicate this to the nation on December 13. This could be possible due to the double engine government, otherwise, the city would have fallen prey to appeasement politics.

You are claiming to form the government again in 2022, but so is the claim of Akhilesh Yadav?

Akhilesh Yadav is daydreaming. In 2017, he claimed to win more than 300 seats, but he was reduced to 47. In 2019, the ‘bua-babua’ (aunt-nephew) formed an alliance, but despite that, we won 64 Lok Sabha seats. The reality is — the return of SP, BSP or Congress is not possible in the state.

But this time Akhilesh Yadav is following the strategy of grand alliance on caste basis, as you did in 2017?

He has no answer to what he did to these castes when he came to power in 2012. If he had given importance to these people at that time, then surely they would have stood with him. Now only those leaders are going to him who have no mass base. People in the state are happy with the double engine government of Modi-Yogi and in 2022, like 2017, the BJP is going to form the government with more than 300 seats.

BSP chief Mayawati is also claiming that she will form the government.

Look, everyone is making claims, but they know the reality. Those who do not have workers left at the booth level also claim to win. Tell me, why should the public listen to her, why give her an opportunity? To gain the trust and confidence of the public, one has to work hard.

You are repeatedly talking about the double engine government, but in recent times, your statement about the leadership in UP has raised many questions.

In UP, the BJP is contesting the elections under the leadership of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and will win the elections only under his leadership. The lotus will bloom again in the state and BJP will form the next government with a huge majority.

In 2022, on which issues are you going to the public to get the mandate again?

Good governance, development, law and order, curbing corruption, 24 hours electricity, network of roads, expressway… we have so many issues. In fact, the opposition is without issue, it has no issue at all.

But the opposition parties are targeting you even on the issue of law and order.

Today the law and order of the state is fine. Goons, criminals have either been eliminated or put behind bars. Now, no one has to migrate from UP out of fear of mafia or criminals. No one can dare to cause a riot. We are number one in terms of law and order. I appeal to the people of the state to once again give blessings to the BJP to form the government in 2022 because we want to take UP to even greater heights.

Recently your tweet about Mathura was the talk of the town.

I only meant to say that the way rapid development work is being done in Ayodhya and Kashi, similar work should also be done in Mathura too.

Finally, how many seats are you expecting this time?

As of now, elections have not been announced, but let me tell you right now that you can expect the same election results in 2022 as in 2017. We will form the government again with more than 300 seats in the state.

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