VARANASI: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday targetted the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), saying “the BJP wants people to ride the ‘bicycle’ (also the SP’s election symbol) in the 2022 assembly polls in the state, which is why fuel prices have been hiked in an unprecedented manner”.
He was addressing a public meeting at Durgaji Intermediate College in Sehda area of his Azamgarh parliamentary constituency on Thursday where he also distributed laptops among meritorious students.
Akhilesh further said, “Price of petrol has gone above Rs 100 while that of diesel is also skyrocketing. It has happened in the regime of BJP, which had sold dreams of boarding people in ‘hawai chappal (slippers) on aeroplanes. However, the increased prices have compelled the people to avoid riding even motorcycles.”
“By doing this, the BJP government is hinting the people to ride bicycles now,” said Akhilesh, asking chief minister Yogi Adityanath “not to be worried about who will come to power next as people are well aware of the lies of the BJP”.
Wooing the young voters, Akhilesh said, “Today’s laptop distribution by SP is not only for felicitating the meritorious and extending technical support for improvement in studies, but also to remind the BJP that it too had promised in its Sankalp Patra of 2017 assembly elections to give laptops, tablets, free data and even free Wi-Fi to selected institutes.”
“But, in the past four and half years, it has failed to fulfil this promise and is now planning to distribute tablets,” he added.
“SP had distributed laptops in its regime, which helped students in many ways. Even during Covid-19 lockdown the students having laptops had advantage in continuing their studies while others had to depend on smartphones,” said Akhilesh, adding, “Babaji (Yogi) doesn't know how to operate a laptop. Laptops would have been distributed by him if he knew how to operate them.”
Directing his ire towards Yogi, the SP chief alleged, “To ensure that his favourite contractors get contracts for the Purvanchal Expressway, Babaji claimed to have reduced its cost which, however, resulted in the quality of the work being compromised. Now, people will suffer stomach and waist problems when they run vehicles on the expressway.”
He added, “When I laid the foundation of the Purvanchal Expressway project, I had decided to engage the company which had installed the giant statue of Sardar Patel in Gujarat, by asking it to make the Purvanchal Expressway better than the Agra-Lucknow Expressway.”
The construction of Agra-Lucknow Expressway was done by ensuring that aeroplanes could also land on it. Its inauguration was also done with the landing of jets. If I return to power, I would ensure the inauguration of the Purvanchal Expressway by landing a plane on it.”
He also targeted the BJP-led Union government for privatising airports, airlines and other public sector companies.
Akhilesh also took targetted the government on the issue of rise in price of LPG cylinders, farmers’ movements and issues of agriculture sector and unemployment.
