Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday thanked a galaxy of leaders, including B R Ambedkar, Kanshi Ram, Ram Manohar Lohia and his father Mulayam Singh Yadav for showing the path to social justice.

He said leaders such as B R Ambedkar, Kanshi Ram, Ram Manohar Lohia, Jayaprakash Narayan, and Mulayam Singh Yadav, his father, showed the path that the SP will follow to do justice to the oppressed and backward.

Thursday marked the 19th death anniversary of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) founder and Dalit icon Kanshi Ram.

Addressing a press conference in Lucknow, Yadav said, “We are committed to strengthening the fight for social justice and empowering the oppressed, Dalits, and minorities. The Samajwadi Party has taken a pledge to establish a government of PDA in Uttar Pradesh.”

Yadav recalled that it was with the SP’s cooperation that Kanshi Ram secured his first stint in the Parliament.

“It was with the support of Samajwadi Party, Netaji (Mulayam Singh Yadav), and our colleagues that Kanshi Ram became a Member of Parliament from Etawah. At that time, when communal politics was at its peak, it was the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party that stood together to fight it,” he said.