Family of boy born in ATM queue after demonetisation to launch SP's cycle yatra next month

Keen to score a political point, Uttar Pradesh's opposition Samajwadi Party has chosen the family of two-year-old Khajanchi, who was born outside an ATM shortly after the Centre's demonetisation move, to flag-off its over 40-km 'Haq aur Samman Yatra' being carried out in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

And the family of another tiny-tot, Akhilesh, who was born on a state highway last year, will mark the closing of the yatra, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said today.

The cycle yatra on September 16 will be led by SP chief Akhilesh Yadav from Kannauj, the constituency from where he will contest the Lok Sabha polls, to Agra Expressway to highlight the "failures" of the ruling BJP at the Centre and showcase his own party's development vision.

"We have chosen, the family of little Khajanchi, who was born while his mother was standing in an ATM queue to withdraw money after demonetisation. His family will be flagging off our cycle yatra. It's an attempt to show the failed demonetisation move which severely affected traders and our economy," Akhilesh Yadav told PTI.

Significantly, it was his birth near the ATM that led to the boy being named 'Khajanchi' which means cashier in Hindi.

The yatra after covering over 40 kms will end at the Lucknow-Agra Expressway, where landing of airforce planes were done during Akhilesh Yadav's regime and later by the Yogi Adityanath government also.

The closing of the yatra will be marked by the family of another child, also named Akhilesh, who was born on the expressway near Khabauli village in December 2017.

Residents of Hayatnagar Bhaura village in Bangarmau area of Unnao district, Shivpal Yadav and his wife Meera had left for hospital as soon as she developed labour pain.

Just when their car reached the airstrip on the expressway, Meera gave birth to her first child, whom they named Akhilesh.

"We have these two children, who are symbolic of the failed demonetisation move and the development vision of the earlier SP government," Akhilesh Yadav, a former chief minister, said.

During the yatra, Yadav will meet party workers, farmers, locals to highlight the failures of both the central and the state government.

"This yatra will just be a start. It is named 'Haq and Samman' yatra so that people realise they have to snatch their rights and get due honour. It will continue till the Lok Sabha elections. Wherever the stretch is upto 50 kms we will be taking out cycle yatras and for longer distance Rath yatras will be taken out," Yadav said.

He said, "we have initiated work of perfume hub in our regime and that was stopped by the present government. The project of open 'Aloo mandi' (Potato markets), which we planned to open were also shelved by this government."