Modi, Mulayam to address rallies in UP today

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi and Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Mulayam Singh Yadav will address rallies in Uttar Pradesh today.

The Gujarat Chief Minister will address a rally in Agra, while 200 km away in Bareilly, Mulayam Singh and his son, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav will address a 'counter-rally'.

Meanwhile, according to TV reports, Uttar Pradesh BJP will felicitate its MLAs Sangeet Singh Som and Suresh Rana, who were arrested for allegedly inciting communal violence in Muzaffarnagar, during Modi's rally in Agra today. Both the MLAs are currently out on bail.

Earlier addressing a rally Uttar Pradesh's Bahraich town, Modi hit out at the Samajwadi party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) for indulging in vote bank politics, and added that the two parties are competing amongst themselves to collect criminals for their party.

"SP, BSP are competing to collect criminals, and make money through corruption. Two BJP MLAs were wrongly arrested and put behind bars. I want to ask those 'shehenshah's' in power in Uttar Pradesh, what was the reason you jailed two of our MLAs and your case did not stand in a court of law? For vote bank politics, they don't want to keep criminals in jail, and want to imprison innocent people," he said.

"In Uttar Pradesh when there is power failure it makes is no news, but when there is electricity supply it makes news. There is a competition as to who has the most number of criminals in their parties, there is competition on corruption," he added.

Modi also said that Uttar Pradesh has the potential to develop itself, and added that if the state had progressed, the entire country would have fared better.

"We have to stress on skill development - that is the only way we can ensure jobs for youth. In Gujarat, Sugar mills start working after Dussehra. Here in UP, Diwali has gone by, but the mills are yet to start functioning. If Uttar Pradesh decides, India can get political stability," he said.