Lucknow

The Uttar Pradesh government today declared public holiday on birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel and Acharya Narendra Dev tomorrow, making it the 39th in the state.

“Public holiday has been declared by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on birth anniversary of Sardar Patel and Narendra Dev,” a spokesman said here.

As Kurmi, an OBC community, constitutes nearly seven per cent of population and regards Sardar Patel as their icon, the ruling Samajwadi Party feels it would help the party to woo them in the state and could counter BJP, which is going all out to encash Patel’s name.

“With 39 public holidays a year, there has been a 50 per cent increase in the state government’s list of public holidays in the past 10 years,” noted a senior official.

The Samajwadi Party government had earlier declared a holiday on December 6, the death anniversary of Bhim Rao Ambedkar, which was seen as an attempt to appease Dalits.

It had also declared holidays on the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Chandrashekhar (April 17), Maharana Pratap (May 9), Maharishi Kashyap and Maharishi Nishadraj Jayanti (April 5), and Hazrat Ajmeri Garib Nawaj Urs (April 26) besides others.

June 24 was also declared as public holiday in UP to mark socialist leader Karpoori Thakur’s birth anniversary.

PTI