BJP hits out at Mulayam Singh Yadav for flip-flop on supporting Cong

BJP today hit out at Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav for his flip-flop on supporting the Congress, saying it shows fear of losing the polls in Uttar Pradesh and challenged the ruling party to refuse support of SP and BSP to the UPA government.

"Does Mulayam Singh Yadav's statement- which he changed later- about supporting the Congress mean that there are apprehensions and fear of losing the Uttar Pradesh elections in both these parties?" BJP Chief spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said.

He alleged that there is nothing new in what Yadav has said as it is known that SP and BSP have given their letters of support for the UPA government to the President of India.

"There is affection for each other in Delhi and conflict in Lucknow," Prasad said.

Drawing the Congress into this debate, the BJP General Secretary said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi should show courage and intervene in the matter.

"Rahul Gandhi has said there will be no tie-up of the Congress with any other party. Digvijay Singh has also said it but nobody takes cognizance of what he says. We have only one request to Rahul- if you have the guts and the courage, please tell Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to convey to the President to return the letters of support of SP and BSP," he said.

The BJP further maintained that it does not see much significance in these comments made by Yadav and Gandhi.

"The people of Uttar Pradesh are aware and can see through this," Prasad said.

BJP also criticised Rahul Gandhi for rubbishing the manifesto of other parties.

"Rahul Gandhi is a big leader of the Congress. He should know that tearing the manifesto of other political parties is not a part of our culture," Prasad said.

He alleged that it is the Congress which has failed to keep the promises it made during the Lok Sabha elections.

"In 2009, your respected mother (Congress President Sonia Gandhi) had promised that we will check price rise within 100 days of coming to power. But nothing was done. The report of an international NGO, Save the Child, has said that 29 per cent of children in India are not getting food, leave aside nutritional food," Prasad said.

He asked Rahul what he had to say in this regard.

Prasad further insisted that the Congress-led government at the Centre would not have done anything to fight corruption had the media not exposed scams like 2G spectrum allocation and Commonwealth Games.

"If they come to power, will Uttar Pradesh also be run like the UPA government has been run in the last seven years," Prasad said.

BJP also targeted the Congress for raking up the minority quota issue despite objections by the Election Commission.

"Congress leaders are engaged in oneupmanship among themselves on this issue for votebank and appeasement politics. This is highly regrettable," Prasad said.

BJP said it expects the Election Commision to take cognisance of the latest episode where union minister Beni Prasad Verma has spoken on minority quota, and take appropriate action.