As Akhilesh joins Rahul yatra, crowd echoes message from stage: Unemployment a concern

Four days after his party sealed a seat-sharing pact with the Congress, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday joined Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Agra. Both leaders addressed the gathering, which included students and job aspirants, targeting the BJP governments at the Centre and the state.

“The message from here isBJP hatao, desh ko bachao (remove BJP, save the country),” Akhilesh said, urging the people to defeat the ruling party in all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh.

“Agra is famous across the world. Those who are walking with this Mohabbat ki Dukan (a reference to Rahul’s yatra)… the love that is in the city, take it and distribute it throughout your yatra. In the times ahead, the challenge is to protect democracy and the Constitution,” the SP chief said, addressing the gathering from a podium in front of a statue of B R Ambedkar in Agra’s Tedi Baghia area.

Akhilesh’s presence at the yatra, and the show of strength along with Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi, follows the seat-sharing pact sealed on February 21 under which the SP will contest 63 seats and the Congress 17 in Uttar Pradesh.

In his address to the gathering, in which many held flags of both parties, Rahul said, “This is the aim of the INDIA alliance, we are fighting for social, economic justice, justice for farmers… We have said that our government will give a legal MSP guarantee to farmers.”

“Our first and most important thing to do is to end hatred,” he said.

Akhilesh also referred to the dreams of the youth being shattered, and the youth being worried about employment and their degrees — something that was echoed by those in the crowd.

As Akhilesh walked up to the podium, Rani, a third year BA Hindi student, edged closer to the crowd