New Delhi: Ruling out a 'Modi wave' in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Akhilesh Yadav said on Thursday that the Samajwadi Party was not worried about the BJP's prime ministerial candidate as ground realities were different than those projected on television.
He also said the UP government led by him was working for the benefit of all communities and termed as 'misinformation' suggestions that SP was biased towards Muslims.
Akhilesh said there was no disconnect between him and his father Mulayam Singh Yadav in running the government and that the SP chief was free to flag issues where he thought the government was not performing up to expectations.
"I see no wave in Uttar Pradesh. You talk of crowds in BJP rallies. More people attended rallies organised by SP... The battle (elections) will be fought on the ground not on TV," he said.
He was asked whether SP was worried about Modi and his aide Amit Shah making inroads in the state and about the crowds the Gujarat chief minister was attracting in his rallies.
He was speaking at 'Agenda Aaj Tak' - a two-day conclave of India Today Group that began here on Wednesday.
"SP will fight the elections alone in UP. SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav has made it clear already," Akhilesh said, when asked about a possible tie-up with the Congress. He also said that even outside his state, his party would fight the general elections on its own. Asked whether he would 'shake hands' with Rahul Gandhi after the elections, he skirted the question saying the numbers Congress get in Lok Sabha elections were not yet known. "People want a third alternative... Our focus will be to get maximum number of seats," he said.
Asked about his government's 'bias' towards the minority community and the breakdown of law and order machinery in the state against the backdrop of 100 communal riots taking place last year, Akhilesh said it was a "misinformation" being spread by certain forces to create a communal divide in the state.
"It is wrong to say that law and order has broken down completely in UP. Whenever SP comes to power, certain forces deliberately try to create tensions between communities," he said.
Denying allegations that his government was indulging in minority appeasement, Akhilesh said not only Muslims, but even others were released against whom cases were found to be false.
"We have even released various political leaders against who cases were found to be fake," he said.
He said after the Muzaffarnagar riots, compensation was given to both communities.
"I respect the Supreme Court order. We followed the directive and amended our order," he said.
VHP leader Pravin Togadia, who was to attend the next session of the conclave, was present when Akhilesh was taking questions.
Togadia asked why the SP government was taking "unconstitutional steps in freeing members of the minority community chargesheeted in terror cases and giving compensation to only Muslims after communal riots".
Akhilesh shot back that there was nothing unconstitutional in freeing innocent people.
Taking a dig at Togadia, he said after VHP's '84 kosi yatra' failed to take off in Ayodhya, the VHP leader was "hiding" from enforcement agencies.
He also rejected criticism that there were several chief ministers, including senior ministers and Mulayam Singh Yadav, running the state.
"The chief minister takes the final decision in a Cabinet. Azam Khan does not turn down my decision, and I don't turn down his. But if there is an important suggestion I do incorporate that," Akhilesh said about his relations with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Azam Khan who has been critical of several decisions taken by the government.
