Saran (Bihar) (PTI): Samajwadi Party president and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday joined the Congress' 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' in Bihar's Saran district.

In a post on X, senior Congress leader K C Venugopal said Yadav is a "steadfast ally" in the party's fight against the BJP's alleged attempt to destroy the country's democracy.

"This morning, former UP CM Akhilesh Yadav Jee joined the Voter Adhikar Yatra in Saran. Welcomed him to this historic movement to protect democracy. He has been a steadfast ally in our fight against the BJP's destruction of our democracy, and a strong voice for the poor and underprivileged in UP and across the country," Venugopal said on the social media platform.

He also shared photographs of Yadav meeting Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav.

Rohini Acharya, the daughter of RJD supremo Lalu Prasad, was also present there.

Acharya had contested from Saran in the Lok Sabha polls last year, and failed to win the seat.

Gandhi launched the Congress' 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' from Sasaram in Rohtas district on August 17 to protest against the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.

The yatra, supported by all INDIA bloc constituents, will culminate in Patna on September 1.

The yatra has so far covered Gayaji, Nawada, Sheikhpura, Lakhisarai, Munger, Katihar, Darbhanga, Madhubani, Sitamarhi, Muzaffarpur, Purnea, West Champaran, Gopalganj, East Champaran, and Siwan districts.

It will pass through Bhojpur and Patna.

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New Delhi (PTI): The BJP on Tuesday alleged that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's accepting Aroop Biswas' resignation as the state sports minister is nothing but a "rear-guard action" to douse public anger over the mismanagement of football icon Lionel Messi's event last week.

BJP co-in-charge for West Bengal Amit Malviya alleged that this is also an "open confession" that the Messi event fiasco was not accidental but a government-manufactured disaster, borne out of the poor governance of Banerjee, her ministers and the state bureaucracy.

Banerjee on Tuesday accepted Biswas' resignation as the sports minister in the wake of the controversy over the mismanagement of football icon Messi's event last week, a senior leader of the ruling TMC said.

Biswas, who had written to the chief minister seeking to be relieved of his responsibilities as sports minister, will continue as a cabinet minister, retaining charge of the power department.

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Reacting to the development, Malviya said in a post on X, "TMC Sports Minister Aroop Biswas resigns after the Messi fiasco and Mamata Banerjee accepts it in record time."

"Do not mistake this for accountability; this is nothing but a rear-guard action to douse public anger. anger! This is not 'Raj Dharma'," he added.

The BJP leader alleged that the incident was the outcome of "loot" of common people which is "so synonymous" with the TMC.

The incident was also the outcome of the "shameless VIP culture that TMC thrives on and deep-rooted cronyism promoted by Banerjee," he charged.

Malviya further alleged that Biswas' resignation exposes a "collective failure of Mamata Banerjee, her partisan bureaucracy, and her crony cabinet".

"This is a symbolic sacrifice, a political hoax, soon to be buried under layers of bureaucracy, with no justice, no accountability, and no remorse," the BJP leader said, adding, "No resignation will bring back the time lost, the money wasted, or the stolen chance for football lovers to witness Messi in Kolkata."