Saifai: Amid the ongoing third phase of the Lok Sabha elections, Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav on Tuesday said that the '400 paar' slogan is being given to only boost the morale of the BJP workers.
Yadav also appealed to the voters to remove the Bharatiya Janata Party from power to save the Constitution and protect reservations.
"I will cast my vote at Saifai Primary School, along with my entire family. I appeal to the voters to remove the BJP and press the Samajwadi Party's button to save the Constitution, protect reservations, for employment and alleviate poverty," he said.
He also mentioned that the BJP has brought the country's economy to the brink of ruin.
"During the 10 years of Modi's tenure, the foreign debt has increased five times more than what it was during the combined tenure of 14 Prime Ministers. Look at the World Development Report. Our position in the Hunger Index has gone very low. Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are also above us. To boost the morale of BJP workers, '400 paar' slogans are being given," he added.
The Samajwadi Party's candidate from Firozabad and son of Ram Gopal Yadav, Akshay Yadav, appealed to everyone to cast their vote.
"Vote for development, employment of youth, to save the Constitution and for a change," he said.
Meanwhile, the polling started for 93 Lok Sabha seats across 12 states and union territories in the third phase of the general election on Tuesday at 7:00 am.
The states and union territories where the elections are being held in this phase are Assam (4), Bihar (5), Chhattisgarh (7), Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (2), Goa (2), Gujarat (25), Karnataka (14), Maharashtra (11), Madhya Pradesh (8), Uttar Pradesh (10) and West Bengal (4). The BJP has bagged the Surat seat unopposed. In Uttar Pradesh, voting is underway in 10 seats: Sambhal, Hathras, Mainpuri, Agra (SC), Fatehpur Sikri, Firozabad, Etah, Budaun, Aonla, and Bareilly.
Prominent leaders to contest in today's poll battle include Union Home Minister Amit Shah, former Madhya Pradesh chief ministers Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Digvijaya Singh, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, Samajwadi Party leader Dimple Yadav, and NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule, among others.
Notably, voting will not take place for Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat on Tuesday as the Election Commission of India (ECI) has postponed the polling to the sixth phase to be held on May 25. Originally, voting was scheduled to be held on 94 Lok Sabha seats in the third phase. —ANI
