Bareilly, September 24, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
All India Muslim Jamaat national president Maulana Mufti Shahabuddin Razvi Barelvi has accused Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav of trying to appease Hindus through the party’s PDA Yatra while, according to him, distancing himself from Muslims.
Razvi said Yadav’s decision to launch the PDA Yatra from Raebareli was aimed at hurting the Congress, describing Raebareli and Amethi as traditional Congress strongholds.
“If this ‘Yatra’ had begun from Etawah, Mainpuri, or Saifai, then it would have made sense because these areas are known for being ‘Yadavland’ and are strongholds of the Samajwadi Party,” the cleric said.
He also criticised the saffron-coloured campaign vehicle being used for the yatra, alleging that Yadav was attempting to appropriate a colour associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Razvi appealed to Muslims not to participate in any PDA Yatra activities, arguing that the campaign did not represent their interests. He said that if Muslims were formally part of the yatra, it should have been called “PDM”.
The cleric further alleged that Yadav was using the yatra to appeal to Hindu voters while keeping away from Muslims, and urged members of the community to stay away from the campaign.
Yadav on Thursday launched the Samajwadi Party’s PDA Rath Yatra from Raebareli as part of the party’s preparations for the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. The PDA formulation refers to the party’s outreach to backward classes, Dalits and minorities.
The choice of Raebareli, which is associated with the Congress and is represented in the Lok Sabha by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, has attracted political attention. The specially prepared campaign vehicle has been described by the SP as its PDA Rath.
Ahead of the yatra, posters depicting Yadav in the avatars of Lord Ram and Lord Krishna were put up in Raebareli, along with images of SP founder Mulayam Singh Yadav and B.R. Ambedkar.
Razvi’s remarks are his political assessment of the yatra and its objectives; the Samajwadi Party has described the PDA campaign as an outreach effort focused on backward classes, Dalits and minorities.
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