Ruling out a Modi wave in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday said the Samajwadi Party was not worried about the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate as ground realities were different than those projected on television.
He also said the U.P. government led by him was working for the benefit of all communities and termed as “misinformation” suggestions that the SP was biased towards Muslims.
Mr. Akhilesh Yadav said there was no disconnect between him and his father Mulayam Singh Yadav in running the government and that the SP chief was free to flag issues where he thought the government was not performing up to expectations.
“I see no wave in Uttar Pradesh. You talk of crowds in BJP rallies. More people attended rallies organised by SP... The battle (elections) will be fought on the ground not on TV,” he said.
He was asked whether SP was worried about Mr. Modi and his aide Amit Shah making inroads in the State and about the crowds the Gujarat Chief Minister was attracting in his rallies.
He was speaking at a conclave organised by a media group in New Delhi.
“SP will fight the elections alone in U.P. SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav has made it clear already,” Mr. Akhilesh yadav said, when asked about a possible tie-up with the Congress. He also said that even outside his state, his party would fight the general elections on its own.
Asked whether he would “shake hands” with Rahul Gandhi after the elections, he skirted the question saying the numbers Congress get in Lok Sabha elections were not yet known.
“People want a third alternative... Our focus will be to get maximum number of seats,” he said.
