Aparna Yadav, who quit Samajwadi Party to join BJP, takes dig at opposition
Samajwadi Party founder Mulayam Singh's younger daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav had quit the party and joined the BJP a month before the UP assembly elections on January 19.
After the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) massive victory in the Uttar Pradesh assembly election, Aparna Yadav - the daughter-in-law of Samajwadi Party founder Mulayam Yadav, who joined the BJP just a month before polls - has condemned the rigging of EVMs, or electronic voting machines. "EVMs should not be rigged..." she told a Hindi news channel in response to allegations by the opposition, including SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, of EVM capturing and vote tampering during counting yesterday for the UP election.
Aparna Yadav also said the people of UP had 'voted in a free and fair manner' and elected the Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government to a second term. The BJP and its allies recorded a dominant win in the UP Assembly election, winning 273 of 403 seats.
SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, whose party won 125 seats to finish second, had alleged that EVMs in Varanasi district had been transported illegally and without informing concerned candidates. Calling on the Election Commission to act, he said it was a 'theft of votes'. Officials dismissed this and said EVMs meant for 'training purposes' were being transported.
Aparna Yadav also spoke about her role in the BJP and said she would assume any responsibility her new party offered her. She said she had joined the BJP to serve the nation.
She also took a dig at the opposition and said they should think about their mistakes - after a drubbing in the 2022 Assembly election - and where they might have gone wrong. The BJP leader asserted that people of every religion, class, and clan had voted for the BJP.
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On Thursday, after it became clear the BJP would return to power in UP, Aparna Yadav expressed her satisfaction and said, "Hindu-Muslim-Sikh-Isai sabke sab hein bhaajpayee. (Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Christians... all are BJP supporters). This is an answer to all those who divided the state on the basis of appeasement politics, caste. We are forming a government with 'Jai Shri Ram' on March 10. Can't get a better government than this."
Seen as a high-profile signing for the BJP - particularly after the ruling party leaked over a dozen MLAs and three ministers to the Samajwadi Party in the run-up to the election, Aparna Yadav did not, however, contest the UP poll.
The BJP recorded a second straight victory in Uttar Pradesh and also dominated Uttarakhand, Goa, and Manipur, while the Congress suffered a massive setback in all five states. Meanwhile, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) bagged a landslide win in Punjab.
Also read: UP polls: Yadav family presents united face in Saifai
