Lucknow: Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday accused ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders and government officials of being involved in a major land scam in Ayodhya.
The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister, in his address at a party function here, alleged that the land scam in Ayodhya was a widespread form of corruption perpetrated by those in power.
Earlier on July 10 too, Yadav had attacked the Uttar Pradesh government over allegedly selling land in Ayodhya to outsiders and demanded a thorough probe into these land deals, claiming a scam worth crores of rupees.
He had attacked the Yogi Adityanath-led government based on a report in the newspaper ‘Indian Express’. Yadav said on Thursday, “Officials and BJP people are engaged in loot and where there is theft, there will be no development. I thank my party leaders for exposing the dark truth of loot in Ayodhya. If they can do such theft in a holy place like Ayodhya, then imagine how many more thefts must be happening in other districts of Uttar Pradesh.”
He claimed that farmers who donated land for good causes were denied compensation when circle rates were increased. “When land of poor and innocent people was taken and given to others, circle rates were increased in Ayodhya. Is this not a loss of revenue?” Yadav asked. The former chief minister also exposed the alleged involvement of BJP functionaries in illegal activities.
“I am happy that we have received copies of land registries linked to BJP functionaries. Defence land, which was meant for artillery practice, was also sold by BJP people. They also changed the railway ‘alignment’, which earlier did not affect the land of the poor or their businesses. This change is a deliberate move to snatch land from people who have been living and working there for centuries,” Yadav alleged.
He also attacked the BJP’s stand on corruption and asked, “Is this their definition of ‘zero tolerance’ against corruption? The slogan they have given is to make our people prosperous.” Addressing supporters from Ayodhya, Yadav assured them of the Samajwadi Party’s support.
He said, “We are not against development. We want Ayodhya to become a world-class city with world-class infrastructure but it requires vision.” Yadav said, “I assure the people of Ayodhya that when the Samajwadi Party government comes to power after two years, we will turn Ayodhya into a world-class city and compensate for any losses suffered by farmers and the poor. We will ensure that there is prosperity in their homes.”