Elections and summers have one thing in common. They bring out hidden snakes from their hibernated sleep. Uttar Pradesh (UP) assembly election to be held in the summer of 2022 also holds the same promise. Like every election, Akhilesh Yadav looks all set to partner with Kejriwal for his election dreams.
AAP and SP confirm coalition talks to beat Yogi
On Wednesday, 24th November, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) confirmed that they are in talks with Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party (SP) for a seat-sharing arrangement for UP elections 2022.
Akhilesh Yadav posted a photo on Twitter in which he is seen attending a meeting with Sanjay Singh, Rajya Sabha MP from AAP, and Dilip Pandey of the SP.
एक मुलाकात, बदलाव के लिए! pic.twitter.com/45XntIKOGp
— Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) November 24, 2021
Talking to Indian Express, Sanjay Singh proclaimed that he and his party would go to any extent to defeat BJP in the UP elections. Claiming that the UP is a misruled state under Yogi Adityanath, Singh said, “We have started the talks today. Our primary goal is to defeat the BJP in Uttar Pradesh which is suffering under the misrule of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. AkhileshYadav is in talks with many parties and our meeting today is also a step in that direction,”.
Single minded goal is to defeat BJP
The Uttar Pradesh chief of the Kejriwal-led party also invited all opposition parties to join hands in AAP’s single-most agenda of defeating BJP.
In what seemed to be a confirmation of the meeting, Rajendra Chaudhary, the spokesperson from the Samajwadi Party also echoed Kejriwal’s sentiment of defeating BJP at all costs. Informing media about the minutes of the meeting Chaudhary said, “During the meeting, it was agreed in principle to remove BJP from power in Uttar Pradesh. The strategy to remove BJP from power in UP was also discussed,”
The meeting between AAP and SP functionaries came a few days after AAP first indicated a pre-poll alliance with SP. On the 82nd Birthday of Mulayam Singh Yadav, the patriarchal head of SP, Sanjay Singh had met him personally to wish him well on his birthday. The meeting was considered to be politically significant since a phone call was enough to wish him on his birthday, but Singh chose to meet him personally.
Kejriwal’s typical flip flops
Recently, Kejriwal has been ambivalent in his UP-election opportunism. Firstly, he tried to persuade the Hindus by organising Tiranga Yatras across major cities of UP like Noida, Ayodhya, Lucknow, and Agra. Kejriwal who once had spoken against Ram Mandir decided to visit Ram Lala in Ayodhya and offer his prayers. When people of the UP saw that Kejriwal had banned crackers in Delhi and is Ram-bhakt only for his political opportunism, he then started to appease opposition parties which are believed by many to be anti-Hindu.
Read more: Arvind Kejriwal has appointed men with hose pipes to clean the Yamuna
After failing to appease Hindus, Kejriwal tries appeasement tactics
Kejriwal went to apply his tried and tested technique of distributing freebies by announcing free electricity to farmers and citizens in the state. Then he went on to organize the Rojgar guarantee rally in Lucknow, which was postponed due to administrative reasons. As he witnessed his party not being able to gather any momentum, he is forced to form a political opportunist alliance with SP.
Read more: Kejriwal’s freebies mutate into giant potholes and mini rivers on Delhi roads
Yogi Adityanath has left SP with no political clout
In Assembly elections 2017, Yogi Adityanath had led BJP to tremendous victory with 312 seats. SP was hammered as they garnered 177 fewer seats from the previous election. AAP on the other hand was nowhere in the fray.
Yogi Adityanath has repaid the faith shown to him by the people. During his stint as Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh has emerged as the chief investment destination for investors. This comes on the back of improved law and order scenario thanks to the Yogi government’s free hand to the law enforcement agencies to slay the anti-social elements, Jihadists, and other Islamists.
Read more: How Yogi Adityanath took on Gangster Atiq Ahmed and destroyed him
The steroid-fueled emphasis on defeating BJP by the opposition parties like SP, AAP is a testament to the fact that the Yogi Adityanath government has left them with no political ground whatsoever to operate in the state. Since SP and AAP have no individual identity left, their only option is to go on the offensive mode by forming a coalition.