Those who discriminate, spread hatred cannot be Sanatani: Akhilesh

Samajwadi Party chief targets BJP over poll irregularities, promises full teacher status for shiksha mitras

Akhilesh Yadav attacks BJP's politics, saying discrimination and division are incompatible with Sanatan Dharma.

SP chief alleges electoral malpractice ahead of 23 October's Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council polls.

Yadav promises full teacher status for shiksha mitra s and backs Azam Khan's family ahead of Rampur visit.

In a veiled attack on the BJP, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday, 21 October said those who practise divisive politics, discriminate against others, lie and foment discord cannot be called Sanatanis.

Invoking the principle of ' vasudhaiva kutumbakam ' (the world is one family), Yadav said all people on earth belonged to one family and described those who denied this idea as 'fake'.

"The sun is Sanatani. The wind does not discriminate against anyone. Those who discriminate, do not speak the truth, do not love others and divide people cannot be Sanatani," he told reporters.

Yadav also alleged that the BJP could not win elections without dishonesty, irregularities and manipulation.

Appealing to voters to support Samajwadi Party candidates in the graduate and teacher constituency elections to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council on 23 October, he said a victory for his party would help advance development, education and employment in the state.

"The BJP itself is the real crisis. The crisis will end only when the BJP is removed," he said.

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Yadav appealed to the Election Commission of India (ECI) to ensure free and fair elections, urging officials to discharge their duties impartially rather than act as political workers.

"If they act as political workers, they should be prepared to go to jail," he said, warning that officials allegedly involved in electoral malpractice would be held accountable for irregularities, including those concerning transfers and postings in the education department.

The SP chief also questioned how BJP leaders and ministers were able to send voice messages to voters when, according to him, electoral rolls were not readily available to others. "How have voter lists reached ministers? They must have hired a company, which may have recorded their voices and sent the messages. Voice messages can be sent only when you have the data," he alleged.

.The B.R. Gavai incident: What 'sanatan' is and what it isn't. He accused officials in the education department, particularly basic shiksha adhikari s and district inspectors of schools, of intimidating people in areas where elections are scheduled.

"These officials are continuously threatening people over mobile phones and calls. I want to make it clear that the evidence being gathered against them could be sufficient to send them to jail," Yadav said, referring to the possibility of the SP returning to power in Uttar Pradesh.

He urged teachers, school managements and others receiving such calls or messages to record them and share the evidence with the Samajwadi Party.

SP promises full teacher status for shiksha mitra s

On the issue of shiksha mitra s, or contractual primary-level teaching personnel, Yadav said the Samajwadi Party would work to grant them full teacher status if it formed the government in Uttar Pradesh.

He said the party would make a separate budgetary provision for the purpose without taking away the jobs of existing teachers. Shiksha mitra s would also receive government benefits, he added.

Asked what designation would be given to them, Yadav said the decision would be taken after the party formed the government, adding that they could be called 'Samajwadi teachers'.

He accused the BJP of introducing an incomplete arrangement for shiksha mitra s and said an SP government would work towards granting them full recognition and benefits.

. Akhilesh accuses BJP of undermining education and reservation

Yadav said the Samajwadi Party was the only political outfit capable of protecting reservation, people's rights and dignity. He accused the BJP government of shutting schools and educational institutions and alleged that it did not want people belonging to the PDA -- pichhda , Dalit, alpsankhyak , referring to backward classes, Dalits and minorities -- to become educated, prosperous and socially empowered.

Akhilesh to visit Rampur, backs Azam Khan's family

Asked about his proposed visit to Rampur on Thursday and whether he would meet senior party leader Azam Khan and his family, Yadav said they had faced injustice and discrimination under the BJP government.

"The government has committed injustice against them on a large scale. The Samajwadi Party has consistently worked to secure justice for them and will continue to do so in the future," he said.