Akhilesh Yadav government to complete one year in office

LUCKNOW: Winning a record mandate on the promise of providing strong law and order and ending corruption, the biggest challenge before Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav in his first year in office was posed from his own partymen and their brazen style of politics.

Coming at the helm with a strong message to unruly elements that his Samajwadi Party would no longer tolerate the style synonymous with it till now, 40-year-old Yadav's continued attempts to stay clear of that image proved not very successful with incidents of SP workers, leaders and supporters taking law in their hands at regular intervals.

Be it firing by MLAs' supporters during victory processions, a minister running on horseback at a railway platform, another minister being accused of abducting a CMO or a leader enjoying minister's rank being accused of helping animal smugglers and more recently a controversial minister being named in the murder of a police officer, Yadav has been forced to bear barbs in his first year in office.

About a dozen communal clashes also took place during this period.

Even though the SP government made headway in fulfilling poll promises like distribution of unemployment allowance, laptops, 'kanya vidyadhan', loan waiver of farmers and free irrigation, but the modalities and conditions worked out for these schemes later provided scope to detractors to question its intentions.

Even as the power scenario remained grim and no major investment came through, the government drew solace in the interest shown by investors in meetings and the encouraging response of the World Bank.

The massive arrangements at the Maha Kumbh could have been a feather in the cap of the Yadav government, as these were completed in record time, but for the tragic stampede at the Allahabad railway station.

Yadav's government completes one year in office tomorrow.