India bloc intact; SP to contest 2027 UP polls as part of it: Akhilesh

Hindustan Times

4 hours ago

LUCKNOW Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday said the INDIA bloc is intact and asserted that his party will contest the 2027 assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh as part of the opposition grouping.
The former chief minister also said that the SP is fully prepared for the panchayat polls likely to be held in the state early next year.
To a query on a recent statement by Congress MP Imran Masood regarding seat sharing between the SP and the Congress in 2027, Yadav said: 'We are not bothered about any such statement...India bloc is intact and we are firmly with it. Those who are unhappy can walk out...the alliance will contest the elections together.'
A few days back, Masood had told media: 'We (Congress) will contest with all our might. And if there is any understanding, it will have to be respected mutually. The seat-sharing formula for the 2024 Lok Sabha election will not work in 2027.'
Both the Congress and SP are members of the opposition INDIA bloc, which was formed ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls to take on the BJP. The SP won a whopping 37 LS seats while the Congress's tally was revised from zero to six, giving it a new life in the state.
On Tuesday, the SP chief met representatives of Pasmanda Muslims and assured them of taking note of the issues faced by the community. Yadav also said he will ensure that issues faced by the weavers' community are included in the party manifesto for the upcoming elections.
Speaking to the media after the meeting, Yadav said: 'The BJP government has ruined electricity infra, healthcare and education system. If the proposal sent by the BJP government to increase power tariff is implemented, then electricity will be very expensive. Business and industries will not be able to run. It will become difficult to even charge mobile phones.'
'The quality of primary schools has deteriorated...children are not going to schools. The government has ruined secondary schools along with primary schools. Healthcare services have collapsed and medical colleges do not have staff and resources as per standards,' added the SP chief.
Speaking on the inclusion of the Pasmand community in PDA, Yadav said, 'PDA is united against the misrule, injustice, atrocities and corruption of the BJP government. It is an emotional alliance that includes all people who are suffering, unhappy and insulted by the BJP government. The Pasmanda community is a part of PDA. When the SP forms government, the Pasmanda community will be given full political respect.'
The former UP CM further attacked the BJP government on the issue of unemployment, alleging that business, jobs and employment were not on the agenda of the BJP government. 'The government has not even purchased 20% of the wheat. The chief minister had gone out to do an aerial survey of crops. Aerial surveys are done by those people who cannot face the farmers. All the figures of the government are false. Crop purchase centres were not opened at many places including Kannauj,' said the SP chief.
He said people responsible for the June 12 Air India flight crash in Ahmedabad must tender their resignations.
'Think about the accident that happened in Ahmedabad, no one has resigned till now. Think about what happened -- one moment they were alive, the next moment they were not. In so few seconds, people lost their lives. Where the aircraft fell, how many doctors died? How many people lost their family members,' asked Yadav.
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