BJP's Nitin Nabin, Yogi Adityanath Launch Scathing Attack On Rahul Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav At UP Padyatra

Lucknow: JP national president Nitin Nabin and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath launched a sharp attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav during the party’s ‘Loktantra Bachao, Arajakta Hatao Padyatra’ on Wednesday, accusing the Opposition of misleading people and undermining democratic institutions.

Leading the march, Nabin took a swipe at Rahul Gandhi, saying repeated attempts to relaunch him showed that not only the rocket but also the Congress launching pad was faulty.

Targeting the Opposition over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Nabin alleged that the Congress and the INDIA bloc were more concerned about the three crore infiltrators removed from voter lists than the country's 140 crore citizens.

He said the BJP had earned people's confidence through its work and would return to power in Uttar Pradesh in the 2027 Assembly elections. He claimed that the Samajwadi Party would be completely wiped out in the next elections.

Nabin also accused Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav of blaming Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) for their electoral defeats instead of introspecting on their shortcomings. He said the Election Commission had openly challenged Opposition parties to demonstrate their allegations against EVMs, but their leaders had failed to accept the challenge.

Taking another swipe at the Opposition, he said it had failed to mobilise even 10 per cent of the crowd that the BJP had gathered in Delhi at its rally at Ramlila Maidan.

In Gorakhpur, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath targeted Akhilesh Yadav over his recent remarks that the coming generation would avenge every blow and injury inflicted on people.

Reacting to the statement, Yogi said, "Someone should explain to the Samajwadi Party's 'Babua' that in a democracy there is no revenge, only change. And this change is decided by the people through their voting rights."

He said the people of the country had voted for change in 2014, followed by Uttar Pradesh in 2017. The power to bring about change rested with the people and not with the Congress or the Samajwadi Party, he added.

The Chief Minister also questioned the electoral performance of the Congress and the SP, claiming that the BJP alone had won more Lok Sabha seats in 2024 than the Congress had secured in the last three general elections combined.

The march witnessed the participation of thousands of BJP workers from 12 districts. A large number of people from the minority community also joined the rally, carrying placards bearing the slogan 'Modi Hai, Modi Rahega'.

After the rally, a padyatra was taken out from Maharana Pratap College. Nabin, Yogi, Rashtriya Lok Dal president Jayant Chaudhary, Nishad Party chief Sanjay Nishad, Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party leader Anil Rajbhar and other NDA leaders participated in the march.

During the programme, Yogi, Nabin, Chaudhary, BJP state president Pankaj Chaudhary and other leaders paid floral tributes to the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak, addressing a programme in Kanpur, accused Opposition leaders of attempting to create unrest in the country.

He said Opposition leaders were talking about bringing Bangladesh-like conditions to India and taking to the streets, but their plans would never succeed. The public had lost faith in the Samajwadi Party and the INDIA bloc, he claimed.

In Prayagraj, Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya launched a personal attack on Rahul Gandhi, referring to his family background. He also claimed that Rahul Gandhi would not become Prime Minister for another 30 years and Akhilesh Yadav would not return as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister during the same period.