'UP ke do ladke' will make India's politics all about love: Rahul to Akhilesh

Rahul Gandhi. Pic/PTI

UP's two sons would make India's politics all about love, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on Wednesday to signal his camaraderie with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav. Gandhi's witty take, recalling the "mohabbat ki dukaan" tagline from his pan-India yatras and the Lok Sabha election campaign, came in response to Yadav's greeting on his 54th birthday. Responding to Yadav's wish, Gandhi said, "UP ke do ladke Hindustan ki rajneeti ko mohabbat ki dukaan banayenge -- khata-khat, khata-khat (loosely translating to two boys of UP will make India's politics all about love)".

"UP ke do ladke" was a tagline used to underline the coming together of Yadav and Gandhi in the 2017 Uttar Pradesh assembly polls when the two parties had joined hands. However, in those elections, the alliance failed miserably and the BJP came to power in the state. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had also taken a dig at Gandhi and Yadav during the Lok Sabha election campaign. Without naming Gandhi and Yadav, the prime minister had said, "You might remember here in Uttar Pradesh that the film featuring two boys ('do ladke'), which had flopped last time, the film of the two boys has been re-released by these people."

Gandhi also took a swipe at Modi's attack on Tejashwi Yadav during the polls over a video in which the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader was seen eating fish. Thanking Tejashwi Yadav for his wishes, Gandhi said, "Agla lunch -- katla ya rohu!" Gandhi also thanked several other leaders of the INDIA bloc for their wishes. Gandhi's remarks came amid talk of the Congress and the Samajwadi Party contemplating continuing the alliance in the bypolls and even later. With 37 out of 80, the Samajwadi Party won the highest number of seats in Uttar Pradesh in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, giving a record performance since its inception. Its ally the Congress won six seats while the BJP won 33.

The saffron party's allies the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) won two seats and Apna Dal (S) one. The Congress-Samajwadi Party bonhomie was visible on the ground, with the results proving that the vote transfer between the two allies had also been successful. Buoyed by the results, the two parties have been talking up the INDIA bloc's coordination in ensuring the BJP did not reach a majority on its own. The BJP, with 240 seats, fell short of a majority in the Lok Sabha but the National Democratic Alliance secured the mandate with 293 seats. The Congress bagged 99 seats.

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