UP Election 2022: Mohammad Ali Jinnah makes poll entry as Akhilesh and Yogi spar

Pakistan founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah has off late become a constant in Indian elections. With UP headed for polls next year, Jinnah's ghost has resurfaced.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday equated Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Muhammad Ali Jinnah, saying that they all studied at the same institute, and fought for India's freedom.

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The BJP obviously is frothing at the Jinnah mention. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath hit out at the SP chief calling his statement "Talibani mentality". He sought Akhilesh's apology for comparing Sardar Patel to Jinnah.

"Samajwadi Party Chief yesterday compared Jinnah to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. This is shameful. It's Talibani mentality that believes in dividing. Sardar Patel united the country. Presently, under leadership of PM, work underway to achieve 'Ek Bharat, Shresth Bharat'," Yogi said.

Jinnah has figured as election issue in India on several occasions since the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. In 2019, BJP had a big issue of Jinnah's portrait at Aligarh Muslim University calling for its removal.

In 2020 Bihar polls, BJP's Giriraj Singh had called Congress candidate Maskoor Usmani, who is also an AMU alumnus, a "Jinnah sympathiser".

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