Akhilesh Yadav says impartial elections will be EC's victory

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Monday said the Election Commission of India (ECI) is the only ray of hope which can curb the misuse of the ED (Enforcement Directorate), CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) and I-T (income tax) department by the BJP government from the front.

"E = ED, C = CBI, I = IT. The way ECI is formed by combining the first letters of ED, CBI and I-T is actually a positive indication that 'Election Commission of India' is the ray of hope that can curb the misuse of ED, CBI and IT department by the BJP government from the front," Yadav said in a post on X in Hindi.

"From today, we are entering the first election month of 2024. It is hoped that the 'Election Commission' will fulfil its Constitutional responsibility, will not allow the unbridled and dishonest government machinery to become active, and will become a shield to protect democratic values as always. Only when democracy survives will the dignity (garima) and reputation (pratishtha) of the Election Commission also remain intact," he said.

The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said heartiest congratulations would be due to the Election Commission for conducting impartial elections in a fearless manner and for giving equal opportunity to all the to contest without any bias or discrimination. "Impartial elections will be victory of the Election Commission," he said.

Around 15.34 crore people are eligible to vote in Uttar Pradesh — a politically crucial state with 80 Lok Sabha seats — where elections will be held in seven phases from 19 April.

According to the election schedule, eight Parliamentary constituencies in the state will vote in the first phase on 19 April. These are Saharanpur, Kairana, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor, Nagina (SC), Moradabad, Rampur and Pilibhit.

Voting in the second phase will be held on 26 April, while voting in the third phase will be held on 7 May. The fourth phase of the Lok Sabha polls will witness voting on 13 May. State capital Lucknow will go to polls in the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections on 20 May. Voting in the sixth phase will be held on 25 May.

The seventh and final phase of polling will be held on 1 June and among the seats it will cover are Varanasi — represented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi — and Gorakhpur, the pocket borough of chief minister Yogi Adityanath. Counting of votes will be held on 4 June.