LUCKNOW: With an UP Cabinet minister quitting the state government and three BJP MLAs following him, the Samajwadi Party on Tuesday said it has sent some locks to the state BJP chief to help him down his party headquarters' shutter after the poll results are out.
SP national spokesperson I P Singh, who had quit the BJP in 2019, said he has sent the locks to UP BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh and two other party leaders, including Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, so that they can go home after locking their offices in the BJP headquarters after the March 10 result.
"I have sent a lock to the (UP) BJP headquarters as a gift to Swatantra Dev Singh. Return home after March 10. Now, there is no wave but a storm of the SP blowing (in the state)," the SP leader said in a tweet in Hindi.
In another tweet, he said, "There are three locks with this lock which can be used by Swatantra Dev Singh, BJP general secretary (organisation) Sunil Bansal, and Yogi (Adityanath) ji to be used by them according to their convenience," I P Singh said in another tweet.
In a jolt to the BJP in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday, OBC leader Swami Prasad Maurya, who held the portfolio of Labour, Employment and Coordination ministry in the UP government, resigned from the state Cabinet with two other MLAs to following him.
Maurya, who is expected to join the Samajwadi Party, said he resigned from the Yogi Adityanath Cabinet "due to the attitude of gross neglect" towards Dalits, backwards, farmers, unemployed youths and small traders.
BJP Tindwari MLA Brajesh Prajapati, Tilhar MLA Roshan Lal Varma and Bilhaur legislator Bhagwati Sagar too have announced that they are leaving the party in support of Maurya.
Singh appeared elated over some important state leaders either joining the Samajwadi Party or forging pre-poll alliance with it.
"Omprakash Rajbhar ji, Jayant Chaudhary ji, Rajmata Krishna Patel ji, Sanjay Chauhan ji and now Swami Prasad Maurya ji are with Samajwadi Party," he said, expressing delight over the development in the rival BJP camp.
I P Singh added on Twitter that he has placed an order for many more locks for the BJP leaders to help them close their offices after March 10 when he said the SP will get a landslide victory in the election.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday said the state's people consider his party as an alternative to the BJP and in this assembly polls, they will wipe out the saffron party.
He also alleged that the BJP has betrayed farmers and youths, while prices of diesel, petrol and fertilisers have increased manifold during its regime.
"The people of the state consider Samajwadi Party (SP) as an alternative to the BJP and this time, they will wipe it out in the assembly polls and form the SP's government," Yadav said while addressing party workers at the SP's headquarters here.
According to a party statement, he also promised that if voted to power, the SP will provide 300 units free electricity, free laptops to the youth and make arrangements for free irrigation for farmers.
"The party is moving forward taking all sections along and has formed alliances with regional parties. This time old issues will not work. The SP is training its workers for the past few years on how to take forward work done by the SP government and the party's future plans in the interest of people," the former chief minister said.
The SP was defeated by the BJP in the last assembly polls in 2017.
The BJP has betrayed farmers and youths, Yadav said, adding that prices of diesel, petrol and fertilisers have increased manifold.
"Contrary to the BJP's promise, the income of farmers is now half and price rise has doubled. BJP leaders never take up issues of youths and farmers. Three farm laws were brought to ruin farmers, who were labelled as terrorists," he added.
The laws, which were enacted in 2020, triggered over a year of protests at Delhi's borders by farmers, mainly from Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana.
The agitation was called off after the central government repealed the laws in Parliament last year and agreed to meet their other demands such as those on minimum support price.
Yadav said that all the promises and advertisements of the BJP are a "blatant lie" and asserted that his party always gave honour to women and initiated many schemes for their welfare.
The Uttar Pradesh polls will be held in seven phases -- on February 10, 14, 20, 23, 27, March 3 and 7.
The results will be declared on March 10 along with the four other poll-bound states of Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur.