INDIA WILL GET A NEW PM FROM UP: AKHILESH

BHOPAL: India will get a new Prime Minister (after the 2019 Lok Sabha elections) and that person will be from Uttar Pradesh, said Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav here on Thursday.

Asked if he was ruling out the chances of other leaders who are not from Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh said these leaders were welcome to come to Uttar Pradesh. He was answering a question on who he would back as prime minister between Rahul Gandhi and Mayawati.

Yadav said, “People want to see a change as they are unhappy with the policies and decisions of the central government,” listing demonetisation, unemployment and GST as some of the policies that angered the people. Yadav argued that if Narendra Modi can become the prime minister heading an alliance, there was no reason for the Mahagatbandhan to take shape at the central level. “The Samajwadi Party has taken the initiative and we are vigorously pursuing it.”on question of an alliance wi- th the Congress and Bahujan Sa- maj Party in Madhya Pradesh, Yadav said, “We are having talks with several parties and I have a lot of respect for state Congress president Kamal Nath. However, I can’t share what we discussed.”

BJP state spokesperson Hitesh Bajpai said, “Akhilesh Yadav is right on one count, the prime minister will be from Uttar Pradesh. Modiji will win from Varanasi with a bigger majority and National Democratic Alliance will again come to power.”

Later, Akhilesh met Patidar leader Hardik Patel at the residence of Congress leader and former governor of UP, Aziz Qureshi. They they talked for over one-and-half hours. Denying that he was asking for seats in Madhya Pradesh, Patel said: “When I did not ask for any seats in Gujarat why will I ask for any seats here.”