Even if I win all 80 seats in UP...: Akhilesh on EVM

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday said the 2024 Lok Sabha polls marked the end of communal politics in India, and were a moral victory for the INDIA bloc.

Participating in the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the president's address, the Kannauj MP also questioned the authenticity of EVMs and said he and his party will oppose it even if his party wins all seats in Uttar Pradesh.

Yadav called June 4, the day the election results were declared, as the day of independence from communal politics for India.

He also said that the BJP's defeat in Faizabad seat of Ayodhya, where the Ram temple has been built, shows the wisdom of voters.

"The whole India has understood that INDIA is pro-India. This election is the moral victory of INDIA. It is a victory of positive politics. It is victory of PDA (Pichde Dali Alpsankhayak), social justice movement. 2024's message is also full of responsibility for the INDIA bloc," the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said.

"June 4, 2024 was the day of independence from communal politics for India. In this election, communal politics has lost forever," Yadav said.

"This election is a new era of positive politics, pro-Constitution people have won, the Constitution has won... It is the end of top-down politics," he said.

Referring to the BJP's defeat in Faizabad, he said it was perhaps the wish of Lord Ram.

"Hoi wahi jo Ram rachi rakha (Whatever Ram has planned will happen)," Yadav said.

"The victory of Ayodhya is the victory of the wisdom of India's voters," he said.
Faizabad MP and SP leader Awadhesh Kumar was seated next to Yadav in the House when he made the remarks.

Questioning the authenticity of Electronic Voting Machine (EVM), Yadav said, "When the Model Code of Conduct was imposed, the government and the Commission were favouring some people. I do not want to go into details".

"Somewhere a question has been raised on that institution as well," Yadav said in an apparent reference to the Election Commission.

"I did not trust EVMs yesterday, I don't trust them today. And even if I win all 80 seats, I will not trust EVMs," he said and added "the issue of EVMs is not dead, and we Samajwadis will remain adamant on it".

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla later said it would be better if questions were not raised on the impartiality of the Election Commission.

Raking up the NEET issue, he said, "The achievement of last ten years is the birth of an education mafia. The most prestigious paper in the country was also leaked... The government is enabling leaks because they don't want to give jobs to youth".

"If jobs are given, then reservation also has to be given... knowingly, the government has played around with jobs and reservation," he said.

Backing the demand for caste census, he said social justice is not possible without it.

He also said that the INDIA bloc, when it comes to power, will scrap the Agnipath scheme, and bring back the old pension scheme.

"The concern that people have on Agniveer continues... We will never accept this scheme. Whenever INDIA bloc comes to power, this scheme will be scrapped," he added.