Following the recent sale of national carrier Air India and amid talks of disinvestments from various public sector units, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday sought to dub the Narendra Modi government in the centre as "bechu" (seller) one.
Mr Yadav sought to attach the new tag to the government amid the opposition's earlier one "pheku" (bragger) losing its shine, seeking to take on the BJP in UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's stronghold Gorakhpur.
"This government is now selling everything. It was all okay when it was a ''pheku'' (bragging) government, but there is a ''bechu'' government now, selling all the PSUs," Mr Yadav said, addressing party workers here participating in its 'Vijay Rath Yatra' launched as the SP's poll campaign.
The former chief minister also claimed that various oil companies of the country have made a whopping profit of 600 per cent in the sale of fuels and asked the BJP to account for it.
Mr Yadav also accused the government of "picking up pockets of the poor" and "filling the coffers of the rich".
Once the Samajwadi Party forms the government in Uttar Pradesh after the upcoming elections, it will end all excesses of the present government and take equal care of all sections of society, Mr Yadav asserted.
"This is an election to save democracy and the Constitution," he said, exhorting people to vote for the Samajwadi Party. Targeting Chief Minister Adityanath, Mr Yadav said, "Baba chief minister is not giving laptops to youths because he himself does not know how to operate them."
"People of Azamgarh know who has done developmental works," Mr Yadav said in response to a question on development and asserted that the people of Gorakhpur will bring down the arrogance of the BJP.
The SP Rath Yatra also passed through the Kushinagar district as well.
Referring to the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, Yadav said, "The BJP government has insulted the farmers in the state and have crushed them under tyres of a vehicle."
"The three black farm laws have been imposed on farmers and they are protesting against it but the BJP government is not listening to it," Mr Yadav said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Congress' 'Shahi Parivar' Believes It Was Born To Rule India: PM Modi "Saints, Sages Have Helped Humanity Realize Its Purpose": PM Modi PM Modi Makes '9 Requests' For Uttarakhand, Chief Minister Replies "Officials To Pay From Salary": Top Court Guidelines On 'Bulldozer Justice' "Never Thought He Would...": Cop Who First Arrested Lawrence Bishnoi Deadly 'MATGA Movement' Emerges In US After Trump's Win, Here's What It Is Children's Day 2024: Why It's Called 'Bal Diwas'? UK Writer Samantha Harvey Wins 2024 Booker For 136-Page Novel "Orbital" Donald Trump's Presidency Raises Fresh Conflict Of Interest Concerns Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.