Mulayam Singh Yadav Formally Launches SP Poll Campaign

Ghazipur: Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav on Wednesday formally launched the party's election campaign with his first rally at Ghazipur.

Attacking Narendra Modi over the demonetisation move, Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav said the Prime Minister is being "too arrogant" which "does not augur well" for democracy.

Addressing Samajwadi Party's campaign rally at the RTI ground here, he accused the Prime Minister of working as per his "own whims and fancies" and "cautioned" him to change his policies.

"Pradhan Mantriji ghamand me na choor hon...aaj hum unko savadhan karna chahte hain ke woh apni nitiyon mein sanshodhan karen...loktantra mein manmani nahi chalti...(The PM should not be arrogant. Today I caution him to change his policies. There is no place for individual's whims and fancies in a democracy)" he said.

"This won't work...people are very wise," he said. Uttar Pradesh goes to polls next year. Samajwadi Party had won 227 MLAs in the 403-member Assembly in 2012.

"I have often said farmers and traders are like real brothers...farmers grow crop and traders sell it...but I don't know what is going on in the PM's mind...he threatens and says that honest people are sleeping a sound sleep...are we dishonest that we are opposing it?" Yadav said.

Without directly mentioning the demonetisation move, he said the BJP has taken a "wrong step" and "it is a conspiracy to ruin our traders...along with the farmers and jawans".

"The country is today faced with the most challenging times," he said. Samajwadi Party's UP chief Shivpal Yadav slammed the Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the demonetisation issue.

"It is due to Modiji that today the poor is forced to stand in line and is in distress," Shivpal said.

Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has already kick-started the party's campaign with Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra on 3 November.

The Samajwadi Party's election campaign was delayed due to the family feud and Mulayam cancelling the rally from Azamgarh to start the poll campaign.

In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Samajwadi Party had lost the seat to BJP candidate and now Union Minister Manoj Sinha by a small margin.