'Jugaad Aayog': Akhilesh's latest dig at Election Commission

Lucknow, Sep 5 (PTI) Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Friday said that the BJP got 77 per cent of the votes polled in Kundarki bypoll, while the party's vote bank is only 26-36 per cent, as he insinuated a hand of the Election Commission behind the alleged discrepancy.

The bypoll results for the Kundarki Assembly Constituency were announced in November 2024.

"If the data of Kundarki are considered, 77 per cent of the vote was bagged by them (BJP), while their vote bank is 26 per cent to 36 per cent. They have some officials who are experts," he told reporters here.

"They have an electoral 'tikdi' (troika) -- officials, government, and the commission. It is being said that the commission is a 'Jugaad Aayog'. If the 'Jugaad Aayog' is not co-operating, which is impartial, and should remain impartial, whom should we complain?" he said in a veiled attack on the Election Commission.

In November 2024, BJP's Ramveer Singh won the Kundarki Assembly Seat defeating Mohammad Rizwan, his nearest rival from the Samajwadi Party, by a margin of 1,44,791 votes, the Election Commission had said.

According to the EC, Ramveer Singh got 1,70,371 votes (76.71 per cent), while SP's Mohammad Rizwan stood a distant second, bagging 25,580 votes.

Chand Babu of Aazad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) came third, followed by AIMIM's Mohammad Varish.

The SP chief said that his party workers are making continuous efforts to prevent any vote cutting.

"The BJP has given numerous work (to us) -- increase our votes, making efforts to see that (our) votes are not cut, casting of votes, safeguarding of votes, and then counting of votes. Our party is continuously working on this," Yadav said.

The former chief minister said that ever since the BJP "lost" to the INDIA bloc, and especially in UP, they have realised that their government will not survive. PTI NAV VN VN