BJP today took a dig at the Samajwadi Party over the merger of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari's party with it, saying it shows that the ruling party is "dependent" on criminals to win assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh as it no longer enjoys people's support.
"The Akhilesh Yadav government does not have faith in people. It has faith in criminals and is dependent on them in the polls. We have seen earlier in Mathura land grab incident and Kairana issue that it shelters criminals. This is what it has done in the last four years.
"When people get the chance to give their verdict in the polls, they will teach Samajwadi Party a lesson," its national secretary Shrikant Sharma said, reacting to the development.
He said if voted to power, BJP will uproot these "criminals and gangsters" and rid Uttar Pradesh of them. "We will also give top priority to education, health and infrastructure and restore law and order."
In a controversial move, SP embraced Ansari's Qaumi Ekta Dal (QED) into its fold.
