With 80 Lok Sabha seats from this state alone, UP assumes importance in decision-making process of major political parties for strategy to contest elections.

Prominent political analyst Ramesh Dixit feels that recent results of state assemblies made it clear to Akhilesh Yadav government that it would get votes on the performance on bijli, sadak, paani and law and order.

Dixit said that people of the state were not happy with the performance of the SP government on the issue of development.

He further said that Congress could not improve its base in UP following large-scale corruption charges levelled against UPA government and failure to contain inflation.

Now Samajwadi Party government in the state has no option to take development issue and show some results before the polls.

Senior Congress leader Surendra Rajput says that development had always played important role in the setting up the agenda for polls but in UP poor law and order was major issue during SP regime.

Rajput said that communal violence witnessed in Muzaffarnagar and other parts of the state during last 18 months will also be major issue during 2014 polls. He said that minorities were feeling insure during Akhilesh Yadav government.

Surendra Rajput said that communal violence and law and order had over shadowed development plank.

Senior BJP leader and spokesman Vijay Pathak maintain that recent state assemblies results exposed that corruption and development both were equally important issue. While in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh people voted in favour of development work by BJP governments. At the same time he said that people voted against Congress governments in Rajasthan and Delhi.

Pathak said that his party had always talked about good governance and development but other political parties were trying to divert the attention of the country in the name of castes and religion.

BJP leader said that in UP also his party would make development as main issue and people will reply from Akhilesh Yadav government on this issue.

Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) leader Anil Dubey also feels that development should be major issue for Lok Sabha polls. It was evident from the fact in several states, government were repeated on the basis of the good governance.

Anil Dubey said that CM Akhilesh Yadav had not been able to fulfill one per cent of promises made during 2012 assembly polls. All that is required is that Chief CM should not make false promises but concentrate on good governance.

Samajwadi Party spokesman Rajendra Choudhry maintain that his party had always believed on development as main issue for the polls.

SP leader further said that Samajwadi Party governments always gave importance to development of the state.

Talking about current situation Rajendra Choudhry said that Akhilesh Yadav government would continue to focus on development of the state, which would strengthen democracy and secularism. He further said that his party was always opposed to politics in the name of religion and caste.

Political observers also maintain during last one month Akhilesh Yadav is focusing on development which was evident from signing of MOUs with investors in order to bring in investment of several thousands of crores of rupees.

The main opposition party BSP is launching its political campaign for 2014 polls by holding a mega rally on the birthday of its supremo Mayawati on 15 January in Lucknow. BSP will raise the issue of development during Mayawati's speech and pull up Akhilesh Yadav government on the issue of deterioration in law and order and series of communal riots that took place during last 18 months. (IPA)