Akhilesh pitches Gorakhpur vs Kashi narrative, eyes inroads among Brahmins, business community

Samajwadi Party National President Akhilesh. File.

After the results of the Legislative Council polls, the Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav is trying to pitch an alleged disagreement between the central leadership and the state leadership of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by projecting a Gorakhpur versus Varanasi plank.

He is attempting to make inroads among Brahmins and the Bania community by accusing the Chief Minister and his regime of being anti-Brahmins and Banias.

“Let Kashi drown, but our Gorakhpur business must not stop,” said Mr. Yadav, in a reference to the BJP victory in the Gorakhpur Legislative Council Graduates’ seat, alleging the victory at the cost of the party losing both Legislative Council seats in the Varanasi region.

“The BJP has victimised, oppressed, and humiliated every community, so all the oppressed have come together. The PDA’s support base has now reached 95%, thanks to the Brahmin community, the business community, and the Kayastha community voting for us. For the BJP, politics, not community, is paramount. They’ve resorted to every tactic to defeat their traditional voting communities. The BJP is not anyone’s ally. That’s why, whether it’s the Brahmin community, the business community, or the Kayastha community, everyone is now with us. That’s why we’re now at 95%,” said Mr. Yadav on Friday (October 30, 2026), in Lucknow, addressing a meeting attended by Legislative Council winners from the party and candidates.

In another outreach to Brahmins, Mr. Yadav said the entire Brahmin community is witnessing the harassment of Sanjayan Tripathi, the SP candidate from Gorakhpur Graduates’ seat.

“Corrupt BJP members and their conspiring allies and complicit officials have stooped to every level to win the MLC election. The conspiracy to defeat Dr. Sanjayan Tripathi has been exposed for all to see. The reason for defeating Dr. Sanjayan Tripathi by rigging the counting of votes is not just that he is the SP candidate, but the main reason behind it is ‘Haata Nahi Bhaata’,” he said.

“The BJP has gone downhill in politics. After such a massive fraud, the public has come to understand that the BJP has actually lost every seat. The entire community is witnessing the harassment Dr. Sanjayan Tripathi has faced. His community and the state’s teachers will never forget Dr. Tripathi’s tears,” he added.

The SP won five out of 11 Council seats, which went to the polls on October 23, while the BJP emerged victorious in six seats.

When explicitly asked about the meaning of ‘Haata Nahi Bhaata’, the SP spokesperson Sunil Singh Yadav ‘Sajan’, said, “It is well-known that Haata represents the late Hari Shankar Tiwari, a senior leader from Gorakhpur hailing from the Brahmin community, who is not liked by the present CM. Not only the late Tiwari Ji and his family, but Brahmins in general are not liked by the CM, his hatred towards the community reflects in his government’s approach towards Brahmins”.

Downplaying any resentment over leadership or within the party, the Union Home Minister, in his speech at the BJP’s State executive meeting, urged party workers to throw disappointment and resentment into the Gomti river and work with dedication to form the BJP government for the third time.

Praising the leadership of U.P. CM Yogi Adityanath, the Home Minister said the State government had delivered strong administration and freed the state from the influence of the mafia.