UP polls: SP, RLD announce alliance
Lucknow: The Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Lok Dal on Tuesday formally announced their alliance for the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls at a rally in Meerut and exuded confidence that the BJP will be "wiped out" from the state.
While SP chief Akhilesh Yadav promised to provide due rights to the farmers, RLD president Jayant Chaudhary said the first work after coming to power would be to build a memorial of those who died during the protest against the now-repealed Central farm laws.
Against the backdrop of farmers' protest, the alliance is expected to give a tough fight to the BJP in western Uttar Pradesh which had won 109 of the 136 Assembly seats in the region during the last Assembly polls. Yadav claimed that the BJP did not have any issue to highlight and accused the BJP members of creating fissures in society. "SP and RLD workers, on the other hand, are there to strengthen brotherhood," he said.
The Samajwadi Party chief claimed that under the BJP's rule, people had to stand in queues for fertilisers and for medicine, oxygen and beds during the pandemic. They also had to stand in line during demonetisation, he said.
"This time, people will queue up to oust the BJP from power." "The BJP will be wiped out from the state this time. BJP will be driven out ('khadeda') from western Uttar Pradesh and in the eastern part, the party's sun would set forever," Yadav said.
The timing of Yadav and Jayant Chaudhary's address at the Meerut rally was close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech at a public meeting in Gorakhpur where he dedicated to the country three megaprojects, including an AIIMS and a fertiliser plant.
At the rally, Yadav paid homage to Bhimrao Ambedkar, Ram Manohar Lohia and farmers leader Mahendra Singh Tikait and highlighted their contribution to making an egalitarian society.
"There will be a revolution by farmers in 2022, there will be a change in 2022," he stressed, adding that there should be a decision on the legal guarantee of minimum support price for farmers.
