No impact of Priyanka in UP, Modi to get mandate again: Bhupendra Yadav

New Delhi: BJP general secretary Bhupender Yadav has sought to downplay the impact Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra may have in the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh, saying she had been campaigning in the state even in the past polls. Priyanka Gandhi has in the past campaigned for her brother and Congress president Rahul Gandhi (Amethi seat) and mother Sonia Gandhi who is a member of the Lok Sabha from Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh. Asked what bearing her political entry can have on the elections, including in Uttar Pradesh, Yadav said, "I don't see any impact. She has been participating in poll campaigns earlier too."

"The people of this country have made up their mind to once again give their mandate to the decisive and progressive government led by Narendra Modi," Yadav told PTI-Bhasha. He targeted the Congress and claimed the party's reputation has been declining. "The Congress is going ahead with a negative agenda. The allegations levelled by the party leaders including its president Rahul Gandhi are proving to be false," he said. Referring to the SP-BSP alliance in Uttar Pradesh and non-inclusion of the Congress in the combine for the Lok Sabha polls in the state, Yadav said, "Those left without any reputation are not being welcomed by any party for alliance." Yadav said the opposition parties are "surrounded with contradictions" and claimed that their alliance in several important states is weak.

The BJP in-charge for Bihar termed as "misconception" the contention that the seat-sharing for the Lok Sabha polls in the state where the party is not contesting six seats that it won in 2014 reflected that it "bowed" to its ally JD(U) as seen by some analysts. "There was nothing as such. This is a misconception," he said. He said things such as poll percentage, seat-wise influence of parties and mutual agreement were taken into consideration by the BJP leadership to strengthen the alliance. As per the seat-sharing agreement, out of the total 40 seats, the Bharatiya Janata Party, and the Janata Dal (United) headed by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar are contesting 17 seats each and the Lok Janshakti Party led by Ram Vilas Paswan in six. Yadav rejected the allegations of the Opposition, including the Congress on issues such as Rafale fighter jet deal, saying "The charges have proven wrong. This is clear." He expressed hope that the country will have a "stable, decisive and progressive government under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi".