Opposition Slams Ruling BJP for Politicising Indian President's Visit to Poll-Bound Uttar Pradesh

The Uttar Pradesh state assembly polls are only a few months away and all the political parties have already started preparations. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is spreading awareness about the work done by its government and the opposition parties are accusing the party of doing nothing in the state.

As Indian President Ram Nath Kovind arrived in the poll-bound Uttar Pradesh on a four-day visit on Thursday, the state's main opposition party criticised the ruling BJP for using it to gain political mileage.

Pawan Pandey, the national spokesman of Samajwadi Party said that the BJP is politicising the president's visit before the state assembly polls.

"I have no hesitation in saying this does not feel like a trip being made by the President of India, but it appears to be a trip of a senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party. The BJP appears unwilling even to leave the post of the president aside in their pursuit of the 2022 Assembly polls," he said, adding, however, that the the president is free to travel anywhere he wants.

The BJP in turn rejected the claims, saying it is not the BJP that is politicising the visit but the opposition Samajwadi Party.

Talking to Sputnik, BJP spokeswoman Anila Singh said: “The president doesn’t belong to any political party. He holds a constitutional post. When he is visiting his home state, it is an honour for each and every person of the state.”

“The Samajwadi Party should also feel honoured about it. But instead of that, it is making insulting remarks. They should praise the fact that a person from the state, from such a humble background, has become the president of the country. So, for them, it might be politicising but for the BJP it is an honour,” she added.

During his latest trip, President Kovind is scheduled to visit the state capital city, Lucknow, and Gorakhpur city, the political constituency of state chief and BJP leader Yogi Adityanath. It is his second trip to his home state in just over two months. The president previously came to Uttar Pradesh in June when he visited his hometown Kanpur and the capital city of Lucknow.

On the final day of his visit - 29 August - the president will travel to the temple town of Ayodhya, according to the itinerary released by his secretariat.