'BJP brass pushing cadres to fuel tension in UP'

Openly accusing the BJP of plotting to malign SP’s image in UP, Akhilesh Yadav in an interview to HT said he had information that the saffron party brass is instructing cadres to cause trouble in the state.

Openly accusing the BJP of plotting to malign SP’s image in UP, Akhilesh Yadav in an interview to HT said he had information that the saffron party brass is instructing cadres to cause trouble in the state. The CM also alleged there was a pattern in the way the BJP was fanning communal fire and issues in the state beginning from Muzaffarnagar to Mainpuri. Excerpts:

What about BJP’s ‘love jihad’ allegation on SP?
This is absurdity at its best. All gurus, spiritual leaders, and religions preach about love. Love has no boundaries. But they want to impose restrictions. Is that possible? For their political interest, they are stooping to extreme levels. Their designs are dangerous for the country and society.

Isn’t BJP turning 2017 (UP assembly elections) into a losing battle for the SP?
No, it is turning out to be a losing battle for the BJP. Despite winning the Lok Sabha elections, they have lost elections in Uttarakhand and Bihar. And this is happening so fast. Within three months of governance, the BJP is facing failure. Modiji’s wave has lost its steam.

Isn’t your optimism unreal?
The political scene in UP is much different from Uttarakhand and Bihar. It may spring a surprise. We have a lot to prove before 2017. By 2016, villages will get 18-hour power supply, and cities even more. We have given 13 lakh new power connections, and by 2016 the number would go up to 30 lakh. We have built 2,000 roads in rural areas and our target is to touch 4,000 by 2016. While we will have work to show, their report card would still read about ‘loudspeakers issues’, ‘love jehad’, and communal flare-ups.

But they have 71 MPs...
How does that affect the people? If people voted them in such large numbers, aren’t they accountable to them. What responsibilities have they fulfilled so far? We are the doers. Instead of doing anything constructive, they are looking for chances to pit people against each other. It’s funny how they first create problems and then demand solutions.