Raebareli: Samajwadi Party president and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav visited Raebareli on Friday, where he met party MLA Rahul Lodhi and had tea at his residence. The visit followed an incident during a Samajwadi Chhatra Sabha membership drive in which the party alleged that students were assaulted and that MLAs Rahul Lodhi and Shyam Sundar ‘Bharti’ were subjected to misbehaviour by police.
Yadav’s decision to visit Lodhi’s residence was described by the party as an expression of support for its legislators. His visit also became the focal point of a large mobilisation of party workers and supporters along the Lucknow-Raebareli route.
Yadav travelled to Raebareli as part of the Samajwadi PDA Rath Yatra. Despite heavy rain and poor weather conditions, party workers and supporters gathered at several points along the route. The party said a large number of young people and students followed the convoy in vehicles and on foot.
The procession received welcomes at the Lucknow-Raebareli border, Mohanlalganj, Nigohan toll plaza and other locations. At Churuwa, Yadav joined the PDA Rath along with national secretary Rajendra Chaudhary, Bachhrawan MLA Shyam Sundar Bharti and district president Engineer Virendra Yadav.
According to the party, the nearly 50-km journey from Churuwa to Raebareli headquarters took around five-and-a-half hours due to the large crowds. Supporters raised slogans in Yadav’s support, while local residents, women, farmers, students and young people gathered at several points to greet him.
The convoy also received a floral welcome and a greeting involving a JCB. Horse riders participated in one of the welcome programmes, while local residents presented Yadav with traditional produce. Groups carrying Jai Bhim flags also gathered along the route.
At Raebareli, Yadav attended a public meeting where the party said thousands of people were present despite the rain. During his visit, he also met Rahul Lodhi’s family, visited district president Virendra Yadav’s residence on Jail Road and met the families of Ram Singh Patel and Suresh Yadav.
The Samajwadi Party described the mobilisation as a demonstration of public support for its PDA campaign and said it would continue raising issues concerning students, farmers and other sections of society ahead of the next electoral cycle.
