BJP got its own businessman raided by mistake: Akhilesh on perfume trader's arrest

He claimed that call detail records of the businessman's phone would reveal the names of several BJP leaders

SP chief Akhilesh Yadav categorically denied any link between his party and Kanpur-based perfume trader Peeyush Jain on Tuesday, and mockingly said the BJP got "its own businessman" raided "by mistake".

He also wondered that "when all the resources are with the BJP today, who else can have such a huge amount of cash" and claimed that the CDR (call detail record) of the businessman's phone would reveal the names of several leaders of the saffron party, "who were in touch with him".

Peeyush Jain was arrested after hundreds of crores of rupees, besides gold, silver and sandalwood oil, were recovered and could not be accounted for. Jain was sent to judicial custody for 14 days on a Kanpur court order on Monday.

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The details of cash withdrawal from banks would bring out the truth, the Samajwadi Party (SP) president said. "By mistake, the BJP got its own businessman raided. Instead of SP leader Pushpraj Jain, it got Piyush Jain raided," Yadav told reporters before the start of the 'Samajwadi Rath Yatra'.

He also claimed that Samajwadi Attar (perfume) was launched by SP MLC Pushpraj Jain and not Piyush Jain. Taking a swipe at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said, "Due to the mistake of Digital India, it got its own businessman raided."

The union finance ministry on Monday said the recent seizure of more than Rs 177 crore unaccounted cash from the perfume trader's Kanpur house was the "biggest ever seizure of cash" by an enforcement agency.

With months to go for the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, BJP leaders have been attacking the SP over Jain's arrest, claiming that the perfume trader had links with Yadav's party.

The SP, however, has been denying any links. "Even television channels that were flashing the news that the house of an SP man has been raided when the raids started realised by afternoon that it was not true and hence, stopped saying it," Yadav said.

He added that the seizure of the huge amount of cash from the Kanpur-based businessman proved that demonetisation and the Goods and Services Tax (GST) have failed.

Addressing a rally at the GIC ground here, the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said Unnao is the land of Hasrat Mohani, who had given the call for "inquilab" (revolution) during the freedom struggle.

"The entire state is witnessing a similar situation today... Inquilab will happen again and there will be a change of government in the state in 2022," Yadav, who has been crisscrossing Uttar Pradesh as part of his party's 'rath yatra' ahead of the crucial Assembly polls, said.

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Taking a swipe at Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, he mocked that a "yogi" (seer) never lies. "Tell us how many people have been given jobs by you. How many youngsters have received tablet computers and smartphones?" Yadav asked.

He accused the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh of gross mismanagement during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic and referred to bodies floating in the Ganga during the period. The former chief minister said if the SP returns to power in the state, it would give a compensation of Rs 5 lakh in the event of the death of a bicycle rider in an accident.

The bicycle is the poll symbol of the SP.

Yadav also claimed that Kanpur Metro is a contribution of the SP, which had launched the project when it was in power in Uttar Pradesh. He said the future SP government would extend the Kanpur Metro project to Unnao.

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