Who needs English, asks SP

Samajwadi Party (SP) president Mulayam Singh Yadav said that if his party is voted to power, English-medium schools would be abolished and girls would be entitled to free education up to graduation.

"English cannot be a compulsory medium of communication in public life. I am not against English but we must promote Hindi at all costs," he said. He also said the use of computers will be curbed if a government is formed with its support.

"The use of computers in offices is creating unemployment problems, Yadav said. He was speaking at a press meet to  release his party's manifesto for the Lok Sabha. Yadav also said that though his party saved the UPA from being voted out of power over the nuclear deal, PM Manmohan Singh had "overlooked and insulted us".

Among other things, the SP manifesto promises better relations with neighbouring countries. " We will increase security along the borders and also work to ease tensions,” Yadav said. The SP leader also said his party would also work to tackle the recession by offering unemployment allowance for  jobless youth.

It also promises to improve the plight of farmers while tackling the problem of unemployment with the help of schemes aimed at development of small and medium industries. The manifesto also promises visas for foreign students who wish to study in Darul-Uloom Deoband, a renowned Islamic seminary. For the past 15 years, visas have been suspended. On terrorism, Mulayam said its basic cause lay in regional disparities. "We will take strict action against communal and casteist forces. We will attack terrorism at the roots," he said.