"UP Government Has Surrendered Before Criminals": Akhilesh Yadav

Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav charged the Uttar Pradesh government on Saturday with surrendering before criminal elements because of which women are not safe in the state.

"Sisters and daughters cannot be safe till the BJP government is there in Uttar Pradesh as this government has surrendered before criminal elements," he said in a statement issued by the party.

Daughters, mothers, sisters, villages and cities are different but their fate is the same, Mr Yadav said.

The state is fast turning into "barbaric Hatya Pradesh" he said.

Questioning the Shakti Mission launched by the state government for the security and empowerment of women and girls on the occasion of Navratri on Saturday, Mr Yadav questioned its relevance.

When the situation is so bad, what is the relevance of the special campaign of the chief minister for the safety, security and empowerment of women, he asked.

The government that has failed on all fronts needs to quit in the interest of the state and its people, the Samajwadi Party chief said.

Referring to cases of crime against women in different districts of Uttar Pradesh, he said people have lost faith in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government and its police. The family of the Hathras gangrape victim also wants to leave the state due to this, he added.