Samajwadi Party leader and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has promised to build a city named after the Hindu god Vishnu, which will have a temple inspired by Cambodia’s Angkor Wat temple complex, if his party comes to power in the next Assembly elections in 2022, PTI reported.

His statement came a few days after Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya said most Muslims want Ram temple to be built in Ayodhya and said the Centre may table a bill in Parliament for the construction of the temple.

“We will develop a city in the name of Lord Vishnu over 2,000 acres of land near Lion Safari [in Etawah district],” Yadav told the news agency on Wednesday. “We have a lot of land in Chambal ravines, and the city will have a grand Vishnu temple that will be a copy of the famous Angkor Wat temple.”

Yadav said a team of experts would be sent to Cambodia to plan the city, which will be a centre for culture and knowledge of India’s ancient times.

He also criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party for the lack of development work.

“The BJP believes in conspiracies,” he alleged. “We believe in development. They befool people to get their vote...The people of the state are fed up with the BJP and are looking for a chance to ensure it gets out of power. In 2019, the BJP will get defeated due to its anti-people politics.”