Civil society organisations on Friday took a stand saying they wanted to see a change of guard both in the State and at the Centre.
“Bharat Jodo Abhiyaan has been working as a civil society platform to ensure that India remains a democracy, that our Constitution is protected, and that the rights and equality of all people and communities are upheld,” said Yogendra Yadav, national convener of Bharat Jodo Abhiyaan.
“This can happen only when BJP and its allies (open and hidden) are defeated in the Lok Sabha elections next year and the upcoming Assembly elections in Telangana. Hundreds of senior social activists and movement leaders are part of this platform,” he said at a press conference in Hyderabad.
“The Telangana elections will set the tone for the Lok Sabha elections, and show that even the seemingly most powerful leaders and governments can be brought down by common people,” said Mr. Yadav, who has toured 12 constituencies in the State and interacted with voters. Sharing the stage with him were Sukumar of Bharat Jodo Abhiyaan, Zahid Qadri of Jago Telangana, Kirankumar Vissa of Telangana People’s JAC, Pankaj Pushkar from Madhya Pradesh, Kiran Kumar of OBC Students Association, and B.V. Seshagiri from Advocates JAC.
“We are opposing both the BJP and the BRS in Telangana because both the parties are working in tandem behind the scenes keeping in view the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. A vote for BRS is a vote for BJP, and vice-versa. We want to convey this message to all the voters of Telangana, and urge them not to be misled by their public statements,” said Mr. Yadav.
