New Delhi: Ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, local people have put up a banner saying ‘no road, no vote’, outside their village in the Gauriganj tehsil in Amethi, drawing attention to their problems. A banner was put up outside Purey Alpi Tiwari hamlet in Sarmeny village under Jamo block on Monday warning to boycott the coming elections with the locals raising slogans. Amethi, which is considered a VVIP constituency, was represented by the Nehru-Gandhi family until Union minister Smriti Irani won the Lok Sabha seat in 2019.
Gauriganj SDM, Digvijay Singh revealed that the information about the villagers’ protest has been received and effort will be made to resolve the issue following further investigation, reported news agency PTI.
Omprakash Ojha, a resident of the hamlet, highlighted the lack of paved roads despite seven small unpaved ones connecting the village to nearby areas. “Due to lack of access to the village, we have to perform the marriages of our sons and daughters elsewhere. Even bikes cannot move here during the rain”, he said, as quoted by PTI.
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No Basic Amenities In Amethi Village: Locals
Ojha also mentioned the absence of a drainage system and adequate drinking water facilities, noting the village’s exclusion from the Jal Jeevan Mission’s promise of tap water to every household. He said even the water tap pipeline under the scheme has not been laid here.
Ram Abhilash, another local resident of Sarmeny also talked about the lack of development in the area since independence. “We are continuously complaining but no one has given any thought to it. Now all of us have made up our mind that until our problems are not resolved, we will boycott the upcoming Lok Sabha elections,” he said, as per PTI’s report.
Just a week prior, residents of Bhawanipur village in the Sangrampur development block took a cue from their counterparts and erected a banner bearing the powerful slogan “no road, no vote.” However, the administration promptly met the villagers and pacified them, the report stated.
A purported video shared by an X user showed people bearing a board that read ‘No Road, No vote’.
@myogiadityanath @PMOIndia @DmAmethi @CMOfficeUP @smritiirani No Road No Vote pure alpi Tiwari Sarme Jamon Amethi ke samast gram vasi isbaar vote ka vahiskar karege aaj bhi aadiwasiyon ki zindagi jeene ko majboor no road no nali no drinking water pure Alpi Tiwari Sarme Jamon pic.twitter.com/RHQj0bQXHA
— Op Ojha (@opojha156070323) March 18, 2024
The political history of Amethi has long been intertwined with the Nehru-Gandhi family, dating back to 1976 when Sanjay Gandhi was elected from the constituency. Rajiv Gandhi, who later became Prime Minister after winning from Amethi. However, in a significant turn of events in 2019, the constituency saw a shift when BJP’s Smriti Irani secured victory over then Congress president and sitting MP Rahul Gandhi.