Reacting sharply to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s assertion that riots or curfews were things of the past in the State, Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday said the CM should disclose how many against him were withdrawn after he came to power and if those cases were linked to riots.
“He should tell us how many cases were pending against him that were withdrawn. Were those cases related to riots?” Mr. Yadav said, in response to a query from reporters about the CM’s statement.
At a press conference, the SP chief accused the saffron party of deliberately trying to divert attention from pressing civic issues such as removal of garbage and cleaning of drains. Mr. Yadav released a booklet ahead of the urban local body polls with promises such as an urban employment guarantee scheme, Samajwadi canteens and grocery stores, yoga centres and self-sufficent gaushalas, if the SP won the polls.
On Monday, while kicking off the Bharatiya Janata Party’s campaign for the urban local body polls, Mr. Adityanath said, “Criminals and anti-social elements have become a thing of the past and U.P. has evolved into a symbol of safety, prosperity and employment. No curfew, no danga, U.P. mein sab changa (Curfews and riots are no longer happening in U.P.; everything is fine),” said Mr. Adityanath.
However, Mr. Yadav was quick to state that the BJP ruled major municipal corporations such as Kanpur, Lucknow, Agra and Varanasi and all the problems in these urban centres were due to mismanagement and malpractices of BJP leaders. The SP leader hoped the party would emerge victorious in the polls scheduled in two phases, on May 4 and 11. The counting of votes will take place on May 13.
