Ahead of the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said the Samajwadi Party’s name should be changed to ‘Samajwadi Yadav Parivar’, targeting party chief Akhilesh Yadav over the representation of Muslim leaders in constituencies such as Azamgarh and Firozabad.
“Akhilesh Yadav, the name of your party should be changed from Samajwadi to Samajwadi Yadav Parivar,” Owaisi said while addressing a rally in Uttar Pradesh’s Kairana district on Sunday.
“There was a time when a Muslim used to win from Azamgarh. Now Akhilesh’s brother has become MP from there. There was a time when a Muslim MP became MP from Firozabad. Now Akhilesh’s family members became MP from there,” he added.
Further, Owaisi criticised Akhilesh Yadav over the Muzaffarnagar riots, alleging that around 50,000 people were displaced from their homes during the violence when the Samajwadi Party was in power in Uttar Pradesh.
“So tell me, the people of Muzaffarnagar and Kairana, isn’t it true that when Akhilesh was the Chief Minister, right on this land, you, we, the world saw with our own eyes how the Muzaffarnagar riots happened. 50,000 people were driven out of their homes,” he said.
The AIMIM chief further alleged that girls were attacked and children were orphaned during the riots, while families who had lived in their villages for generations were left homeless.
“Girls were attacked, and children were orphaned who had lived on their land in their villages for 100-100 years. They were left homeless,” he said.
“Whose government was it? It was the Samajwadi government. Who was the Chief Minister? Akhilesh Yadav was the Chief Minister,” Owaisi said.
Owaisi criticised the opposition parties for “failing” to raise issues of minorities and other weaker sections of society.
He also alleged that mosques were demolished and “half encounters” were continuing in the state under the BJP-led government, but the opposition parties were “silent” and not raising the issue.
Earlier this month, Owaisi had offered to ally with the Samajwadi Party to prevent the BJP from returning to power in Uttar Pradesh for a third consecutive term.
With no development on the alliance front, Owaisi has been seen to be increasingly critical of the Akhilesh Yadav party.
