Despite AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi entering the fray, Akhilesh is confident of his Muslim votebank.
NEW DELHI — The Samajwadi Party (SP), under its new strategy for the early next year Assembly polls, has stitched alliances with small parties besides eyeing the Muslim-Yadav (MY) equation.
The 2022 Assembly polls are important for the SP as it has faced defeat thrice in the elections in the state.
In the 2017 polls, the BJP had worked even on booth levels, formed alliances with smaller parties, managed the caste equations and reaped its dividends.
Taking cue from the BJP, the SP has so far formed alliances with small parties Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party, Rashtriya Lok Dal, Mahan Dal, Janwadi Party and the Apna Dal (kameravadi).
Recently, Aam Aadmi Party Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh met SP chief Akhilesh Yadav.
Akhilesh told IANS that the situation was entirely different in 2014, 2017 and 2019, but in 2022, it has changed a lot.
He claimed that the people of the state will root out the BJP in the polls.
In the 2017 polls, the BJP and its allies bagged 3.59 crore votes and emerged victorious on 325 seats, the SP got 1.89 crore votes and won on 47 seats while the Congress got 54 lakh votes and won on seven seats only.
Political situation is, however, different this time. Om Prakash Rajbhar’s Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party, which was a coalition partner of the BJP, has allied with the SP this time. The Congress has also not allied with the SP this time.
The biggest challenge the SP is facing is to bridge the gap of almost 1.7 crore votes.
SP’s former MP and an important family member of the Yadav family claimed that “vote difference is not a big issue as we had made the government in 2012”.
Dharmendra accused the BJP of fooling the people in the 2017 polls, saying the saffron party projected members of all castes as the chief minister’s candidate, but after winning the polls, it made someone else the Chief Minister. This time, these parties will not get influenced by the BJP, he opined.
Akhilesh said that the farmers, youths, traders and the entire public is with the SP this time.
Dharmendra said that the SP was getting support from all quarters.
Counting the achievements of the Akhilesh Yadav’s government during 2012 to 2017, Dharmendra said famers, women, Dalit, OBC, all sections of the society will vote for the SP.
Despite AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi entering the fray, Akhilesh is confident of his Muslim votebank.
Dharmendra said, every political party want to contest the polls, but this time Akhilesh magic is sweeping the state.
The SP is constantly trying to stung the BJP by holding election rallies and mobilising huge crowds.
Akhilesh is trying to tell his supporters that he is ready to fight heavyweights like Prime Minister Narenda Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. — IANS
