Lucknow: Announcing unconditional support to the INDIA bloc candidates in Uttar Pradesh in the Lok Sabha polls, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Friday said that these elections are being held to save democracy and end "autocracy".
"AAP will fully support the INDIA bloc candidates in Uttar Pradesh. What our role will be and how we will be involved in the campaign will be decided after holding talks with the Congress leadership involved in the campaigning. We will fully support the Samajwadi Party candidates," said AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh.
Addressing a joint press conference with Sawajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav at the SP headquarters here, the AAP leader asserted there is "no condition or demand".
"These are not normal elections, they are for saving democracy, ending autocracy and saving the Constitution of Baba Saheb. This is an election to mobilise people against the dictatorial regime," Singh said.
"We are together in UP, wherever the Samajwadi Party candidate is in the fray, INDIA bloc candidate is in fray we will work for them," he added.
Exuding confidence that INDIA bloc will win the elections, Singh said that every worker and elected representative of his party will work for the Samajwadi Party (SP) candidates.
Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the arrest of elected chief ministers, Singh said, "I have repeatedly said that if any politician is winning, he would not indulge in such tactics and tricks as being done by the PM of putting opponents in jail by framing fake cases, it means lack of confidence at election time." Singh, who hails from Sultanpur, was on a visit to the state.
He also expressed his gratitude to Akhilesh Yadav for attending the rally organised in Delhi against AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal's arrest.
The Samajwadi Party chief thanked the AAP for its support and said the present election is not taking place in common circumstances but they are being contested to "safeguard the Constitution".
The eyes of the entire country and the world are on this election, he added.
Registering his protest against Kejriwal's arrest, Yadav said, "I had gone to Delhi. And in the big rally in support of Arvind Kejriwal ji, I had said that India has been defamed in the world." "The country is being defamed in the world that elected people and heads of state are being treated like this," he added.
The Samajwadi Party chief hit out at the ruling BJP.
"We used to see this happening in the elections of pradhans, we used to watch this taking place at the level of pradhan elections. But an elected chief minister of any state being sent to jail by filing false cases...Similarly, the chief minister of Jharkhand was also sent to jail," he said.
Yadav alleged that the ruling "BJP is also interfering in the institutions from where justice should be provided".
"Who does not know that money was extorted by showing the fear of the same institutions, their own government was formed in Maharashtra and now they are making people join the BJP by putting police in the forefront," he said.
"Many associates who joined the BJP are saying that we are going there physically but are with you from our souls," Yadav said.
(This report has been published as part of an auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)