NEW DELHI: Reacting to the AIMIM and Azad Samaj Party (Kanshiram) joining forces ahead of the upcoming Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday predicted that the alliance would cost the ruling BJP 2-3% of votes.Also Read: Owaisi, Azad announce alliance for UP polls; send message to AkhileshWelcoming the alliance, named the “Samajik Parivartan Morcha”, between the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) and the ASP (Kanshiram), Akhilesh posted a message in Hindi on X, saying, “Social transformation is necessary, but real success would come only when a ‘political transformation front’ becomes active.”“Anyone who fights communal forces for PDA and raises the voice of PDA communities will receive our support in taking their voice to the people,” he added. PDA is an acronym coined by Akhilesh Yadav for “Pichda, Dalit, Alpasankhyak” (backwards, Dalits and minorities), which form the SP’s key support base.
Akhilesh Yadav X post
The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister further stated the AIMIM-ASP (Kanshiram) union would now provide an alternative to “innocent people” who were earlier “misled,” costing the BJP 2-3% of votes.Also Read: Who will Owaisi-Azad alliance hurt most? Explained in 5 charts“People understand the truth about those whose sole objective is to create political excitement through speeches and statements,” Akhilesh Yadav remarked, adding that voters would reject those who merely became “puppets” of “political interests”.The SP chief expressed hope that the formation of such a front would end the practice of political parties or leaders claiming to be the sole representatives of particular vote banks and encourage all stakeholders to work sincerely for the interests of their respective communities.Referring to the forthcoming Assembly elections, Yadav noted that the political direction of the state would be determined by the strength of the core vote bases of different political alliances.“After this development, which had been awaited for a long time, it has also become clear that in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, people genuinely seeking change will gravitate towards the side with a stronger vote base. In this regard, there is no alternative bigger than the PDA,” he asserted.
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He also extended his best wishes to the newly formed front.Earlier in the day, AIMIM chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi and ASP (Kanshiram) president and Nagina MP Chandrashekhar Azad addressed a joint press conference to formally announce their alliance. They also invited the SP and the Congress to join the front.The Uttar Pradesh assembly polls are scheduled to be held early next year, with the BJP seeking a third consecutive term in power, while Akhilesh Yadav will be aiming for a second term as as chief minister after the SP lost to the saffron party in 2017.(With PTI inputs)