Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday accused Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath of misleading the people of West Bengal and said that his party will campaign for the Trinamool Congress in the upcoming state Assembly elections, reported PTI.
In a statement, Yadav alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party wanted to assume power in West Bengal by spreading “confusion and propaganda” during the Assembly polls. “The Samajwadi Party will not allow this conspiracy of the BJP to succeed,” he said.
Adityanath had on Tuesday addressed a public rally in Bengal’s Malda district where he claimed that cow smuggling and forced religious conversions were rampant in the state. Claiming that incidents of “love jihad” were on a rise in West Bengal, the Uttar Pradesh chief minister said that a government that could not provide security to “mothers and sisters” did not have any right to rule. He also mentioned his government’s decision to introduce a law to prevent “love jihad” – a pejorative term coined by the right-wing groups to push the conspiracy theory that Muslim men charm Hindu women into marrying them with the sole purpose of converting them to Islam.
On Wednesday, the SP chief urged the voters not to fall prey to the designs of the BJP, which “indulges in politics of hate”. “It’s in the interest of democracy to be cautious of it [the Bharatiya Janata Party],” Yadav said.
The SP chief said that vice president Kiranmoy Nanda would conduct the election campaign in support of the TMC in West Bengal.
Earlier on Monday, Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav had met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and announced that his party will support the TMC in the elections. “We will lend support to Mamata Banerjee wherever needed,” Yadav had said. “The priority is to stop the BJP at all costs.”
Banerjee had thanked Tejashwi Yadav for the support, and said that he had done well in the Bihar Assembly elections in November. “The BJP cheated in Bihar and stopped him from winning,” the West Bengal chief minister said. “The RJD was defeated by fraud. It will form government in Bihar sooner than later.”
The elections to the 294 seats in West Bengal will be held in eight phases from March 27 to April 29. The results will be declared on May 2. The state will see a three-cornered fight between the Trinamool Congress, the BJP and an alliance between Left parties, Congress and the Indian Secular Front.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!