BJP govt could not remove garbage, clean drains in 6 years of rule, engaged only in corruption: Akhilesh Yadav

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday accused the Uttar Pradesh BJP government of failing to rid the cities of garbage, clean the drains, and repair potholes on the road in six years of its governance.

"The BJP government levies a number of taxes on the public, but does not give any facilities to them. In the name of smart city, it has cheated the public and corruption on a large scale has taken place," Yadav said.

The SP chief made the remarks while campaigning for his party's candidates in Gorakhpur, Deoria, and Sant Kabir Nagar ahead of the May 4 civic body polls.

He said that it is the duty of the municipal corporation to remove garbage, clean drains, connect sewer lines and resolve the problems of stray cattle bulls.

"However, instead of answering these questions … The Chief Minister in 2017 announced a metro train for Gorakhpur. But till today, there is no metro train," Yadav said.

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Seeking votes for SP's mayoral candidate from Gorakhpur Kajal Nishad, he said, "The BJP is insulting Dalits, upper caste, minorities, and everyone else. We the 'samajwadi' want a caste census, so that everyone gets their rights and honour in proportion to their population.

"But, as soon as it hears about the caste census, BJP goes into radio silence."

In a statement issued here, he also accused the state government of engaging in large-scale corruption and being responsible for rise in unemployment in Uttar Pradesh.

"For this, the BJP is responsible. The people of the state are feeling harassed by the BJP, and they have made up their mind to bring in a change. The SP had defeated the BJP in Gorakhpur before, and it will defeat it again in the municipal election," he said.

The SP chief said that the BJP is talking about the 1 trillion dollar economy, but it does not say how it is going to happen.

"The honourable Chief Minister speaks in a way which is beyond a common man's understanding. To publicise its lies, the chief minister has hired a US company at Rs 200 crore. The BJP government is spending crores of public money to paint its lies as truth," he said.

The former UP chief minister said law and order in the state is in shambles and called Yogi Adityanath a "weak" CM for failing to find a permanent police chief for the state.

"Those who speak about law and order, they should tell people why there is no permanent DGP in UP. The police are not getting a permanent DGP. An acting DGP retired, and the one appointed in his place, he too is an acting one. There cannot be a weaker chief minister than one who cannot post his DGP," he said.

Yadav also accused Adityanath of withdrawing criminal cases against him when he came to power in 2017, suggesting had he not done it, he would have topped the criminal chart in Gorakhpur – a constituency which chose him as its MP five consecutive times.

Gorakhpur and Deoria will vote on May 4, while Sant Kabir Nagar will vote on May 11. Counting of votes will be held on May 13.