Akhilesh Yadav’s new bet: Will sitting at the feet of Shankaracharya make things difficult for BJP in UP elections?

Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav’s meeting with Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand on Thursday morning has created a stir in the politics of Uttar Pradesh. This meeting, which took place amid allegations of theft of Ram Mandir donations, is not just a courtesy, but is being considered a big political strategy before the 2027 assembly elections. Seeing Akhilesh Yadav sitting at the feet of Shankaracharya in the picture, political pundits are seeing it as a big ‘masterstroke’.

Accusation of ‘great sin’ on Ram temple

After meeting Shankaracharya, Akhilesh Yadav looked very aggressive. He directly attacked BJP over the case of donation theft in Ram temple and termed it as ‘a great sin in the name of religion’. Akhilesh sarcastically said that the SIT is only covering up the case. He demanded that the CDR of the people related to the case should be released, which would make it clear that 99 percent of the people involved in it are BJP. At the same time, Shankaracharya also bluntly said that an impartial investigation into this ‘mega scam’ will take place only when a ‘new Chief Minister’ comes to the state.

Akhilesh’s new ‘batting’ on BJP’s pitch

This is the first time in the last 10-12 years when Samajwadi Party seems to be doing politics completely on the pitch of BJP. Akhilesh Yadav is now speaking openly on issues like Ram temple, faith and cow protection, which till now were considered the monopoly of BJP. Yadav community considers itself the descendants of Lord Shri Krishna, hence by raising the issue of cow protection, Akhilesh is trying to change the image of his party from ‘anti-Hindu’ to presenting it as ‘protector of faith’.

Will ‘Mother Cow’ become the new agenda of 2027?

These days, Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwarananda has set out on an 81-day journey to give the cow the status of ‘Rashtramata’. After this meeting it has become clear that SP is now including this emotional issue in its agenda. The recent meeting of SP General Secretary Shivpal Singh Yadav and Mainpuri MP Dimple Yadav with Shankaracharya proves that the party high command is very serious about this strategy.

BJP, which till now has been accusing SP of being anti-Hindu, now seems to be on the back foot on these issues. This is the second meeting between Akhilesh Yadav and Swami Avimukteshwaranand in 4 months, which indicates that the opposition is now ready to challenge the Hindutva narrative of BJP by joining hands with religious leaders.