If they say these kinds of things, then Samajwadi Party can also say them, Akhilesh Yadav said (File)
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav responded to Congress leader Kamal Nath's 'Akhilesh Vakhilesh' remark saying that if they say such things, then the Samajwadi Party can also say them, but his party does not want to indulge in this.
"He said this right-- who is Vakhilesh? Akhilesh is there. If they say these kinds of things, then the Samajwadi Party can also say, but we don't want to indulge in this. Our relationship with Kamal Nath is very good. His name is so nice. Whose name has 'Kamal' they will call Wakhilesh only and not Akhilesh," he said on Friday.
Earlier on Friday, while answering a question about SP Chief Akhilesh Yadav's allegations of "betrayal" against Congress, Kamal Nath said, 'Are bhai chhodo Akhilesh Vakhilesh'..."
Meanwhile, Samajwadi MP Ram Gopal Yadav didn't say anything about the statements of Congress leaders, including Kamal Nath, on the Samajwadi Party.
"I don't want to say anything. They are 'Chhutbhaiya' leaders," Ram Gopal Yadav said.
Union minister Prahlad Patel condemned both Kamal Nath and Akhilesh Yadav, saying, "This is very harmful to the democracy, and it will harm the country... The language of both Kamal Nath and Akhilesh Yadav is condemnable. The public is seeing all this, and they will answer this."
CPI General Secretary D Raja said both Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Congress leader Kamal Nath need to explain why this controversy has come up after all the parties agreed to fight together against the BJP government.
"Samajwadi Party, Congress Party, and even the left parties, all are together under the banner of INDIA alliance... Now why dig up the past? Now we will have to come to the present, and we will have to look to the future. ...The primary objective before all secular democratic parties, including the left, is to fight and defeat the BJP. This is what has been agreed upon... But why this controversy between the Samajwadi party and the Congress party is coming up, they need to explain it," D Raja told news agency ANI.
Meanwhile, RJD MP Manoj Jha gave a different perspective to the whole incident, saying, "This happens during elections... Every party has ambitions. I would like to request that the top leadership (of the INDIA alliance) should resolve this in a better manner. People are also eagerly looking at this alternative (the INDIA alliance)...Everything will be fine."
The BJP, monitoring the development closely, is taking a jibe at both parties saying that they (SP and Congress) have come together to fight at the national level but are wrestling among themselves in the states.
Madhya Pradesh is scheduled to undergo assembly polls on November 17 and the counting of votes will take place on December 3.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)