Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav hit out at Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, accusing him of insulting the people searching for their missing loved ones after the Maha Kumbh stampede by calling them “vultures”.
Akhilesh Yadav also took a swipe on UP CM Yogi Adityanath for questioning the report on Prayagraj waters by Centre’s pollution body, saying that it seems like a fight between “Delhi and Lucknow”.
Akhilesh Yadav was referring to CM Yogi Adityanath’s remark in the state assembly where he said, “vultures got dead bodies, pigs got dirt, devotees got God” referring to the Maha Kumbh Mela.
Akhilesh Yadav addressed reporters in Kannauj saying, “Even now, many people are searching for their loved ones — brothers, children and parents (lost in Maha Kumbh stampede last month). Some are still missing. Is the chief minister calling these grieving families vultures? This is the height of insensitivity from someone holding a constitutional position.”
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He added that CM Yogi’s statement was especially offensive as he was setting up a vulture breeding centre in Gorakhpur.
Akhilesh Yadav on Ganga pollution
Akhilesh Yadav seemingly hinted at a rift between the BJP-led central government and the UP government as he suggested that they could not agree on whether the water of the river Ganga was unclean or not.
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He stated that the UP pollution control board had said the water of the Ganga river was clean while the Central Pollution Control Board and National Green Tribunal had raised concerns about the pollution in the water and flagged high levels of faecal coliform in the water as well.
“He is speaking of ‘suar’(pigs). None of us said that the quality of water of river Ganga is bad, Central Pollution Control Board said that. So, who was the govt calling ‘suar’? I think, in the fight between Delhi and Lucknow, they are abusing each other. If Uttar Pradesh Pollution Board is saying that the water is clean and Delhi’s Pollution Board says that the water is bad, it means Lucknow was calling Delhi ‘suar’,” Yadav said.
The Samajwadi Party leader also blamed the BJP-led UP government for the alleged mismanagement that caused the stampede and questioned what the chief minister was monitoring when the unfortunate tragedy took place.
“The loss of lives and chaos in Maha Kumbh is proof of his government’s failure,” he said. Yadav also demanded an official list of the deceased and missing persons in the stampede.