There was an unexpectedly large turnout at Akhilesh Yadav’s first interaction with common people.
In a stark departure from the previous Mayawati regime, chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday threw the gates of his official residence at 5, Kalidas Marg, open to the common people. Thousands of people from all over the state met the chief minister and discussed their problems with him on a one-to-one basis.
This is a welcome change compared to the Mayawati regime which had virtually imposed an un-announced curfew on the highly guarded Kalidas Marg where the CM residence is situated. The entire road was barricaded on both sides, and entry of commoners towards the CM residence was just impossible.
The ‘janta darbar’ or people’s court where commoners could discuss their problems directly with the chief minister has been an old tradition in UP. But Mayawati had put an end to it. Over the past five years, no commoner was allowed to even venture near the CM’s residence. “She was so obsessed with her security that it was impossible for anyone to meet her unless she wanted to,” a senior officer remarked.
Soon after becoming the chief minister, Akhilesh had ordered the VVIP road, where several ministers also have their bungalows, to be opened for normal traffic movement. Though Akhilesh had started meeting people at his official residence, the ‘janta darbar’ tradition has been formally revived only on Wednesday.
The CM has announced that the ‘janta darbar’ would be held every week, Party sources say it was Akhilesh’s father and Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav who had told him to start organizing the ‘janta darbar’ as soon as possible.
“It is a great experience to meet the CM personally,” said a visibly happy Ram Swarup who had come all the way from a district in eastern UP with a request for a ‘pucca’ road leading to his village. “He has assured me that my work will be done. He has also said that I won’t need to come here again for this work,” he said.
Officials estimated that the crowd had crossed 10,000, which resulted in a severe problem for the men in uniform who were under strict orders from the CM himself not to use force to control them. A senior official said most of the complaints related to land disputes, while there were the routine ones for roads, jobs, electrification and water facilities, too.
An old woman, Rajeshwari Devi, who had come to meet the CM after goons had allegedly tried to disposess her of her land, was overwhelmed after meeting Akhilesh. “He called me his mother. Now I think I will not face any trouble from the goondas in my village,” she said.
Akhilesh Yadav, with several senior officers of his secretariat in attendance, kept meeting the people for almost two hours. He would listen patiently to the complainants, assure them of swift action and pass clear directions to the officials. “Akhilesh reminds me of the way Mulayam Singh ji himself used to discuss the common man’s problems with the people in his ‘janta darbar’,” said a senior journalist.
“People are now breathing the fresh air of democracy in UP,” said Samajwadi Party spokesman Rajendra Choudhary.
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