Farmers Movement, TET Paper Leak, Lakhimpur Incident Raised In Akhilesh-Jayant’s First Joint Rally in Meerut

Lucknow: Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) chief Jayant Chaudhary and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav held a joint rally in Meerut’s Dabathua village on Tuesday, in a show of strength ahead of crucial Uttar Pradesh polls which are scheduled to be held next year. This was the first time that the two leaders addressed a rally from the same stage.

The two leaders formally announced their tie-up decision at the joint rally in Meerut district of the poll-bound state.

Slogan — "Kisanon ka inquilab hoga, 2022 me badlav hoga” (Farmers will bring revolution and change in 2022), echoed in the ground where supporters of both the parties were seen jubilant.

The RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary and SP chief and former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav emphasised farmers’ issues and accused the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government of “harassing” the protesting peasants for the last one year. They claimed that the anger of the farmers would prove costly for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the forthcoming Assembly polls in the state.

Chaudhary began his speech, promising that if they come to power in Uttar Pradesh next year, the first work will be to build a memorial for "martyrs" of the farmers' protest.

“The first work our double-engine government will do is to construct a memorial for martyred farmers, who died during farmers' protest here in the land of Chaudhury Charan Singh,” said his grandson Jayant Chaudhary, adding that "Akhilesh ji and I are together, and I am making an announcement in this regard.”

Hailing the farmers' agitation, Chaudhary said, "I appreciate farmers for winning a big battle and forcing (Prime Minister Narendra) Modiji, probably for the first time, to bow before them." He was referring to the repeal of three central farm laws that had triggered a year of protests.

Attacking Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, the RLD chief said, "Babaji becomes angry very fast. You have never seen him (Yogi Adityanath) smiling. He smiles only when he is with 'bacchde' (calves). I ask you people to free him so that he can play with his calves for 24 hours. He cannot handle government files."

He also raised the recent UPTET alleged paper leak issue and added that “because of such incidents youngsters are not getting appointments, and they have to migrate and work in other places.”

The BJP will get a befitting reply from the people in the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls next year as they have understood its politics of hatred, the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) chief said while addressing a rally along with Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav in Meerut.

Pointing out Yogi’s Kairana exodus statement made recently during a rally in west UP, Jayant said, “The BJP during the last assembly elections had claimed that many Hindu families had migrated from Kairana town in fear of criminals. The claim of migration has been contested by some political parties and they got brownie points but this time it will not happen. The youth are very angry due to unemployment and paper leak of competition exams. Even youths from here migrate due to a lack of opportunities and work in the other states. This time, they will not fall in the trap of 'nafrat ki baatein' (talks of hatred)," he said.

Meanwhile, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav’s attack on BJP from Uttar Pradesh came on a day when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was addressing a rally after the inauguration of development projects in eastern Uttar Pradesh’s Gorakhpur region.

"The BJP's sun is certain to set, they (BJP) have committed atrocities on the farmers...their party leaders crushed the farmers under the wheels of their vehicles and they will have to go. BJP will be wiped out in the polls," Akhilesh said.

He also referred to the farmers' agitation and said that their government (SP-RLD), if voted to power, would hike the minimum support price (MSP) and also ensure that the farmers did not have to run from pillar to post in selling their produce.

“BJP is facing the ‘Red Alert’ of inflation; of unemployment; of the plight of the farmer-labourer; of Hathras, Lakhimpur, of women and youth oppression; the downfall of education, business and health (sectors), and it is 'Lal Topi' that will throw BJP out of power this time,” Yadav said in a tweet sharing his photo from the rally with Chaudhary after the rally.

The Samajwadi Party and RLD had earlier entered into an alliance for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The alliance is now aiming to capitalise on the farming belt in western Uttar Pradesh where resentment had been building over the now-repealed farm laws.

The two parties sealed the poll alliance on November 23 ahead of assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh scheduled early next year.

Meanwhile, political experts believe the RLD-Samajwadi Party alliance will help in redefining political and social equations following the communal riots of Muzaffarnagar in September 2013 that led to a Muslim-Jat divide on RLD’s home ground. Currently, the BJP is in power in 51 out of 71 constituencies in 14 districts of Meerut, Saharanpur and Moradabad divisions.

In the 2017 UP assembly polls, the SP had won 47 seats out of 298 it contested in alliance with the Congress and lost 177 seats in comparison to its 2012 figures of 224 seats. The Jayant Choudhary-led RLD won only one seat which was eight below its 2012 assembly election performance. Meanwhile, the BJP had won 130 seats from western UP.

“This time, RLD has an opportunity to take a revenge by improving its performance with the help of SP and get back the Jat vote in its fold," said political analyst Sumit Singh, adding that Jat voters, who are between 25 to 28% of the electorate in the sugarcane belt along with the other castes and communities, including the Gurjars, Tyagis, Brahmins and Muslims, besides the crucial section of Dalits, will play an important role in the elections.