LUCKNOW: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday took a jibe at Uttar Pradesh Industrial Development Minister Nand Gopal Gupta 'Nandi' after the state government transferred the Uttar Pradesh Expressways and Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) from the Industrial Development Department to the Infrastructure Department.
In a post on social media platform X, Akhilesh mocked Nandi, claiming that his powers had been curtailed and suggesting that if he was denied a ticket in the 2027 Assembly elections, his political career would effectively come to an end.
The state government, through an order dated May 27 and released on Monday, removed UPEIDA from the Industrial Development Department and placed it under the Infrastructure Department, which is directly overseen by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Referring to the move, Akhilesh wrote on X: “He has been halved now. If he does not get a ticket in the Assembly elections, he will be completely wiped out.”
He also questioned the timing of the government's decision, asking why Nandi was being stripped of responsibilities after the construction of expressways and the achievement of what he described as “corruption targets”.
With UPEIDA now functioning under the Infrastructure Department, all matters related to expressway construction and development will come directly under the supervision of the Chief Minister.
The SP chief further claimed that the BJP was considering changing all its Assembly candidates in Prayagraj after losing the Lok Sabha seat there in the 2024 general elections.
According to Akhilesh, the BJP believes that its legislators and candidates were more focused on personal interests than public service, which he alleged contributed to the party's defeat in the constituency.
He also claimed that a similar strategy could be adopted in all 43 Lok Sabha constituencies in Uttar Pradesh that were won by the INDIA bloc.
Akhilesh further alleged that the BJP may replace candidates in nine to 10 constituencies where, according to him, the party won through “manipulation and certificates” rather than public support. He said this could eventually lead to candidate changes in nearly 225 Assembly seats across the state.
The SP president also claimed that many sitting BJP MLAs were reluctant to contest the next Assembly election because they did not believe they could defeat the PDA (Pichhda, Dalit and Alpsankhyak) alliance.
He alleged that the BJP’s traditional voter base had shrunk significantly and claimed that several legislators would prefer to conserve their resources rather than spend money on what they perceive as a losing electoral battle.
Akhilesh asserted that the BJP would lose power in Uttar Pradesh and would not return to government again.