NEW DELHI: Samajwadi Party supremo Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday levelled serious accusations against the BJP, alleging electoral misconduct and also declaring the Election Commission “dead”. He claimed that the ruling party, with police assistance, engaged in widespread voter suppression and malpractice in Milkipur bypolls.
“This is the manner in which BJP contests elections. The Election Commission is dead. We will have to gift them white cloth,” the SP chief told ANI, criticising what he described as deliberate manipulation of electoral proceedings.
The former UP chief minister stated that police officials were illegally checking voters’ ID at polling centres, which he viewed as voter intimidation. Ayodhya’s Milkipur went to polls on Wednesday and saw 57.13% voter participation.
In a post on X, he said, “The Election Commission should immediately take cognizance of the pictures related to this news that Ayodhya police is checking the ID cards of voters in Milkipur, in which senior police officers are also involved. This is a democratic crime of indirectly influencing voting by creating fear among voters. Such people should be removed immediately and punitive action should be taken”.
He alleged that BJP supporters caused disturbances at several locations under police protection, with officials deliberately overlooking violations of electoral conduct.
Yadav also pointed out issues with EVMs, mentioning that disruptions at locations like Kutia Amaniganj lasted over two hours, preventing voter participation.
Ayodhya police countered these claims, clarifying that they were only verifying booth agents’ credentials and accused Yadav of spreading false information. “The above photo is of a booth agent’s identity card. The person seen in the photo is a booth agent of a candidate, which has been verified by checking his identity card. Please do not make misleading tweets,” the police responded on X.
BJP spokesperson Rakesh Tripathi dismissed these allegations as unfounded and indicative of SP’s anxiety over anticipated defeat. “The Samajwadi Party is spreading lies out of frustration after its imminent loss in Milkipur,” he stated, accusing Yadav of using propaganda to deflect responsibility. Tripathi suggested Yadav would blame EVMs for the loss, following previous patterns.
The Milkipur bypoll represents a significant contest between the SP and BJP.
The seat, situated in Ayodhya district, became vacant after Awadhesh Prasad’s victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Faizabad. The SP aims to maintain its position, whilst the BJP seeks to gain control of this seat, their sole loss in Ayodhya district during the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.
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