Mulayam dubs UP poll schedule too long

Lucknow, Feb 21 (UNI) Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav today welcomed the announcement of seven-phase state assembly poll in the state, but said the election process was too long for the comfort of people, political parties and officials.

''Ab election ghoshit ho gaye hain to karvana hi hai, lekin saat phase election bahut lamba samay hai (The poll would be held as announced, but the seven-phase poll process is just too long),'' he said immediately after the announcement was made by the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) in New Delhi this evening.

Mr Yadav, whose government is under threat of being dismissed in the wake of a Supreme Court verdict disqualifying 13 MLAs, who defected to the ruling samajwadi Party in 2003, said his party was fully geared up to go to people. ''We will emerge winner on the basis of welfare measures my government has taken during more than three year regime.'' Parrying the question what if the Congress' efforts to impose President's rule in UP succeeded, the CM said ''I do not count Congress any which way, be it as a political adversary or strategist in the poll.'' Mr Yadav, without mincing words, said Congress and BJP had become one and SP would define its strategy against BJP, while Congress was a non-entity for him and his party. ''These parties have constantly been conspiring against SP since long and the time has come for the people to give them a befitting reply at the hustings,'' he added The UP CM, in reaction to the oft-repeated allegations of detriorating law and order in UP, came down heavily on Congress, BJP and BSP for perpetutating a misinformation campaign against the SP government in UP. ''Things on the law and order front are not so bad as are being projected by the opposition,'' he claimed.

Assuring fair and free polls in UP, Mr Yadav said his government had exercised utmost impartiality in the bypoll and civic poll, and would do the same in the assembly poll as well.

Earlier, Mr Yadav had recommended the UP poll in the month of February and had even written a letter to the CEC in this regard.

UNI