Lucknow: Samajwadi Party on Sunday said it would aggressively take on the Bharatiya Janata Party govt during the upcoming Budget session of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly by raising issues of soaring inflation, corruption, unemployment, women’s safety and deteriorating law-and-order situation in the state.Addressing a press conference after a meeting of SP legislators at the party’s state headquarters in Lucknow, SP national president and former UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav said the state’s law and order had completely collapsed under the BJP govt.He alleged large-scale involvement of people linked to the ruling party in the codeine syrup trade and claimed that criminals were being helped to escape from jails with the connivance of senior officials.“Criminals are being made to flee because the govt knows its days are numbered. Everyone is busy securing their own future. We are hearing that criminals are not just escaping but are being escorted straight to Nepal,” Akhilesh said.The SP chief said the BJP govt sharply increased real estate valuation, adding to the public’s financial burden. He claimed that people lost all hope from the BJP after years of “misgovernance” and asserted that the upcoming budget would be the govt’s “last budget,” offering no relief to the common man.“Neither farmers nor youth matter to this govt. If it cared for the public, inflation would not have risen to this level. Gold has become so expensive that poor families will struggle to marry off their daughters. Everything is so costly that people may soon have to wear brass-plated iron instead of gold,” he remarked.Criticising the proposed trade agreement with the United States, former CM Yadav termed it “not a deal but a concession”. He warned it would severely impact agriculture, farmers and MSMEs, questioning how Indian producers could compete with American goods.“Why is it zero tariff on imports and 18% on our exports? The BJP has handed over the market to foreign interests,” he alleged, claiming the agreement would open floodgates for imported edible oil and animal feed, hurting domestic producers.
