Swami Vivekananda said people need bread more than religion: Akhilesh

Lucknow: Samajwadi Party (SP) president and former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday said that Swami Vivekananda had said that the people of the country need bread more than religion.

Addressing a press conference in the auditorium of the party's state headquarters on the occasion of Swami Vivekananda's birth anniversary, celebrated as the 'National Youth Day', he said, "Swami ji had said that the people of the country need bread more than religion. Explaining religious things to the poor will be wrong in today's time."

In response to a question, Yadav said that the BJP will lose the Milkipur Assembly bye-election. Many newspapers, channels and the media are saying that the equation is in favour of the Samajwadi Party, he added.

He accused the ruling party of dishonesty in the recent bye-election and claimed "the public is going to make the Samajwadis win the Milkipur bye-election" The Election Commission announced on Tuesday that the by-election for the Milkipur Assembly constituency will be held on February 5, while the counting of votes will be done on February 10. Earlier, by-elections were held in November 2024 on nine assembly seats of the state in which the BJP and its ally RLD won seven seats, while the SP won only two seats.

Yadav said that Vivekananda first introduced India to the whole world by becoming a disciple of Ramakrishna Paramhansa. At that time, no saint, no guru would have given the introduction of India that Vivekananda gave, he said.

The SP leader said, "Today's youth needs to understand the words of Vivekananda. Knowing about Swami Vivekananda, reading about him and applying what he said in our lives will be a true tribute to him." On the question of going to Maha Kumbh, Yadav said, "I have always gone and if you say, I can also share the picture when I have bathed in the Ganga from time to time. The one who is telling others to bathe in the Ganga should also share at least." Yadav said sarcastically, "Some people go to bathe in the Ganga to do virtue, some people go to donate and some people go to wash away their sins. We will go for virtue and donation."