Jhansi: Hoardings, featuring Samajwadi Party (SP) national president Akhilesh Yadav, Azam Khan alongside slain gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari and slain gangster Atiq Ahmed, cropped up on various unipols at Kachhari Chauraha and Jail Chauraha in the city late on Sunday night, triggering a political controversy here.The hoardings which were mainly seen at Kachhari Chauraha and Jail Chauraha also carried photographs of former SP MLA Deep Narayan Yadav and former Rajya Sabha MP Chandrapal Yadav along with a message claiming that “these people used to run govt”.Though none of the hoardings were visible on Monday, but a video of them being removed by the SP party workers has gone viral on social media.The hoardings sparked a commotion in the area and SP workers reached the spots after being informed about them. SP youth leader Akash Yadav, accompanied by supporters, tore down the hoardings in the early hours.Talking to reporters, Akash alleged that the hoardings had been put up to tarnish the image of Akhilesh Yadav. He said he received a call around 2.30am informing him that the hoardings had been installed during the intervening night. “We can answer hoardings with hoardings, but we have not learnt this kind of politics. We do politics on public issues, go among people and raise their concerns,” he said. He alleged that the references to alleged mafia figures were intended to insult the SP national president and said the party workers removed the hoardings after learning about them.Akash claimed the hoardings had been installed between 2am and 2.30am and were removed within half an hour of the party receiving information about them. He said SP workers remained alert round the clock and would remove such hoardings whenever they came to know about them.On the photographs of local SP leaders on the hoardings, he said the images of a former MLA and former Rajya Sabha MP had been used and alleged that they were linked to “false cases”. He further alleged that similar attempts to tarnish Akhilesh Yadav’s image were being made in several districts.Calling for an end to what he described as “small politics”, Akash said political parties should focus on public issues if they wanted to contest and win elections.
