LUCKNOW: Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Monday launched a sharp attack on the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, alleging that the state had never witnessed a dispensation as corrupt as the present one.
Addressing a press conference at the SP headquarters here following a meeting with party organisational functionaries, Yadav also announced that the party would begin its booth-level election campaign across Uttar Pradesh from Tuesday.
Yadav accused the BJP government of handing over or selling public institutions and cited the Jayaprakash Narayan International Centre (JPNIC) in Lucknow. His remarks came days after Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath accused the former chief minister and his family of “looting” the JPNIC and committing “dacoity” during its construction.
Responding to the allegations, Yadav said the JPNIC had been “sold” for an amount that an industrialist could earn from its parking alone. He questioned the language used by the ruling party against him and his family and alleged that several government institutions were being transferred under the current dispensation.
The SP chief also criticised the government’s handling of the economy, claiming that even sections of the business community were unhappy. “When a capitalist system is promoted, one industrialist ends up consuming another industrialist,” he said.
Yadav alleged that around 26,000 government schools had been shut down in the state. He said the SP would organise programmes at these schools on Teachers’ Day on September 5 to draw attention to their closure.
Raising the issue of electoral rolls ahead of the Assembly elections, Yadav alleged that the proposed annual revision and Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists could be misused to influence the electoral process. He also alleged collusion between the state government and the Election Commission, a charge he did not substantiate.
Yadav expressed confidence that a government representing the PDA — backward classes, Dalits and minorities — would be formed in Uttar Pradesh. He said SP district presidents and executive committee members would publicly highlight, within two weeks, what the party termed discrimination against PDA communities and corruption under the BJP government.
Targeting the Uttar Pradesh Police Special Task Force (STF), Yadav alleged that it had become a “caste-based torture force” and claimed that members of PDA communities were being harassed. He also alleged that Uttar Pradesh had the highest number of custodial deaths and referred to the alleged custodial death of a Dalit man in Budaun.
The SP chief further alleged that a tribal labourer, Ram Janam, was beaten to death in Varanasi by people belonging to the chief minister’s community. He claimed the incident was linked to the labourer’s decision to work at another brick kiln.
Yadav also alleged that fake encounters in the state were influenced by the caste identity of those targeted. He promised that such cases would be investigated if the SP returned to power.
The former chief minister additionally accused the government of using artificial intelligence to create videos targeting him and his family. He claimed that videos had also been made targeting his wife and Mainpuri MP Dimple Yadav.
During the press conference, Yadav displayed a video depicting him alongside a song containing derogatory references to Uttar Pradesh. He also showed what he described as an AI-generated video featuring Chief Minister Adityanath, which made allegations about the state government’s record.
Yadav said the SP would step up its organisational preparations ahead of the elections, with its campaign beginning at the booth level from Tuesday.