The Samajwadi Party and the Rashtriya Lok Dal on Tuesday formally announced their alliance for the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls at a rally in Meerut.

While SP chief Akhilesh Yadav promised to provide due rights to farmers, RLD president Jayant Chaudhary said the first step after coming to power would be to build a
memorial to those who died during the farm protest.

Against the backdrop of the farmers’ protest, the alliance is expected to give a tough fight to the BJP in western Uttar Pradesh, where the ruling party had won 109 of the 136 Assembly seats in the last Assembly polls.

“SP and RLD workers are there to strengthen brotherhood,” Akhilesh said.

Akhilesh claimed that under the BJP’s rule, people had to stand in queues for fertilisers, and medicine, oxygen and hospital beds during the second wave of the pandemic. They also had to stand in line after demonetisation, he said.

“This time, people will queue up to oust the BJP from power. The BJP will be wiped out from the state this time. The BJP will be driven out from western Uttar Pradesh and in the eastern part. The party’s sun will set forever,” Akhilesh said.

He promised to provide cheap electricity to farmers and repaying their dues as he urged people to vote for the alliance to save the legacy of former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh and RLD founder Ajit Singh.

He was referring to the Lakhimpur Kheri incident on October 3 when four farmers were mowed down by an SUV owned by Union minister Ajay Mishra Teni. ARLD chief Jayant said:“Akhileshji and I are together. The first work of our double engine government will be to build a memorial to the farm ers who died during the farm
protest.”

The BJP talks of “hatred” and “our Babaji (chief minister Yogi Adityanath) starts with Aurangzeb and ends with the Kairana exodus,” the RLD leader said.

The BJP had during the last Assembly elections 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 many of those who had been claimed to have fled.

“The paper (of the Teacher Eligibility Test) is leaked, youths are not getting appointments. Youths from here migrate due to lack of opportunities and work in other states. Now this time, people will not fall into the trap of ‘nafrat ki baatein (talks of hatred)’,” Jayant said.

The RLD leader added: “Babaji gets angry very fast. You have never seen him 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.”

Hailing the farmers’ movement, Jayant said: “I appreciate the 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 the three contentious farm laws that triggered the protests over a year ago.

“In Lakhimpur Kheri, farmers were crushed. Over 700 of them died during the agitation (against the laws),” Jayant added.

He asked people to be present in Aligarh on December 23 on Kisan Divas for another rally.