Yogi Adityanath targets Akhilesh Yadav, seeks apology over 'loot' of UP funds

In Deoria, Yogi Adityanath launched 80 projects worth over Rs 305 crore and attacked Akhilesh Yadav. He used the event to contrast his government's development and law-and-order record with the Samajwadi Party's tenure.The term 'BIMARU' was coined by demographer Ashish Bose in the mid-1980s for some of the country's poorest states at the time. (File Photo: ITG)Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday launched a sharp attack on the Samajwadi Party and its president Akhilesh Yadav, saying he should apologise to the people for the alleged "loot" of the state exchequer when the party was in power. He also said the state had moved away from its earlier image of poor governance and insecurity.Speaking at a ceremony in Deoria, where he laid the foundation stones of 80 development projects worth more than Rs 305 crore, Adityanath said Uttar Pradesh had seen development, prosperity and employment because of the governments elected by the people. He also spoke about law and order, welfare measures and the handling of encephalitis in eastern Uttar Pradesh.Targeting the opposition party, Adityanath said, "SP means loot and extortion, SP means a gang of dacoits."Referring to alleged corruption in the construction of the Jayaprakash Narayan International Centre in Lucknow, he said, "For the loot of the state exchequer that the SP chief committed for his indulgence, he should apologise to the people." The chief minister said that earlier a "parallel government of mafias" used to run in the state, but added that Uttar Pradesh had now become what its name suggests and that nobody called it a 'BIMARU' state anymore. The term 'BIMARU' was coined by demographer Ashish Bose in the mid-1980s for some of the country's poorest states at the time — Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. "Now UP has a good image. Mafias have been reduced to dust. Those who breach the security of daughters and traders have only two places to go -- they are either in jail or in hell," Adityanath said.Underlining the importance of electing good representatives, he said, "When good public representatives are elected, good governments come and the results are also good. This development, prosperity and employment are the result of the hard work of the public representatives whom you elected." He said that before 2017, Uttar Pradesh had "neither development nor security nor respect". "There was no employment, nor houses, toilets, LPG connections, electricity and roads for the poor. Schools had become centres of cheating," he said. On encephalitis, Adityanath said the period from July 15 to November 15 used to bring fear to Deoria, Maharajganj, Gorakhpur, Siddharthnagar, Kushinagar, Sant Kabir Nagar and Basti. "This was not a disease; it was the sick mentality of the SP-Congress governments. In 40 years, 50,000 innocent children died, but no chief minister or prime minister from the SP or the Congress came to take stock of the situation," he said.Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Shahi, Minister of State for Rural Development Vijay Lakshmi Gautam and MLAs Shalabh Mani Tripathi and Sabha Kunwar Kushwaha were among those present at the programme, where Adityanath combined the launch of development projects with an attack on the Samajwadi Party and a defence of his government's record on governance, law and order and public welfare.- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Aug 29, 2026 13:59 IST