'Priority is to form INDIA govt after June 4'

SP chief Akhilesh Yadav says Cong & his party are natural allies in UP and the coalition is working on the ground

AFTER a hectic campaign across Uttar Pradesh, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav says his Dalit, Adivasi' formula is working on the ground. He tells Namita Bajpai he is confident of INDIA bloc's win. Excerpts:

After six phases of elections, how would you evaluate the prospects of INDIA bloc in UP?

We have seen bumper voting in favour of the SP and INDIA bloc in the sixth phase. People have given unprecedented support to us and it seems that the NDA will be left much behind.

Initially, I had said that we are ahead in 79 seats and the fight is only on one constituency. But now I feel that we are ahead on all the 80 seats.

In Varanasi, one engine of the double-engine is missing from posters. So, the two engines are colliding with each other. On the other hand, the SP and Congress alliance has become one plus one eleven.

What are the main issues against the BJP?

The Agniveer scheme has frustrated the youth. Paper leak has also left them demoralised. Anger against rising unemployment is palpable on the ground. This government has done very little against perpetrators of paper leaks. The youth is disillusioned with the BJP. They get the message that the government is getting the papers leaked purposely as it does not want to give jobs.

If 60 lakh aspirants could not get jobs due to paper leak of police recruitment drive, as per the formula, let's assume each of them has minimum two members father and mother in the family making it a family of three. This becomes 1.80 crore which is divided by 80, the number of the Lok Sabha seats in the state. It comes out to be around 2.25 lakh.

Thus, in each of the 80 seats, at least 2.25 lakh voters are angry with the BJP. How will they recover this backlog? Price rise is another major issue. NDA MPs are facing massive antiincumbency.