Akhilesh ‘failed to respect’ his father, says CM Yogi

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday lashed out at Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav and said that he "failed to respect" his father and veteran leader Mulayam Singh Yadav.

"Statements were made that 'Ladke hai galati kar dete hai'. I am surprised when they talk about democracy. They talk about security in the state.... Sharm to tumhe karni chahiye jo apne baap ka samman nahi kar paye ho. Is this how you should behave? I have not named anyone but the remarks which have been made have to be discussed," Yogi said in the Assembly during the ongoing Budget Session.

The opposition feels "proud" in calling Uttar Pradesh a 'bimaru rajya', the Chief Minister alleged. “This reveals their intentions for Uttar Pradesh because when they were in the government they could not do anything. Now when the double-engine government is working at a fast pace and is benefitting the public, they are upset," he said.

The chief minister said the government is looking into the Prayagraj incident where shots were fired by multiple men in the BSP MLA Raju Pal murder case with a zero-tolerance policy. He also slammed SP, alleging that the party made Atiq Ahmed an MP. A key witness in the sensational 2005 murder case of BSP MLA Raju Pal, a prime witness was shot dead in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj on Friday.

"The government is working on the incident of Prayagraj on the basis of the zero-tolerance policy. But the criminal who was involved in the incident, was he not nurtured by Samajwadi Party? Was he not made MP by SP. We'll not spare these mafias," he asked the SP. "The mafia who has done this act is absconding from the state today, whoever the mafia may be, our government will not let 'mafia raj' prevail in the state," Adityanath said.