Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav has urged the Uttar Pradesh government to extend the duration of the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj, citing the overwhelming number of devotees on the roads still hoping to attend the mega festival.

Yadav claimed that in previous years, the Maha Kumbh and Kumbh Mela used to last for 75 days whereas the current one schedule is shorter.

Even now, many people want to go to Maha Kumbh but cannot. In such a situation, the government should extend the duration of Maha Kumbh, he said.

Yadav said, “We appeal to the government that many elderly people, who are 65-plus, 70-plus have not been able to take bath in Maha Kumbh. They want to take a bath and want to participate in spiritual programmes. This is an appeal to the government that at one time there used to be a Kumbh of 75 days. Our demand is that the residents of Prayagraj could not even take a bath, so the Kumbh should be given a further extension.”

Visuals on social media show packed trains, congested roads and massive crowds. all heading to Mahakumbh Nagar. Earlier this week, roads leading to the Maha Kumbh Mela witnessed severe traffic congestion stretching for kilometres. The Prayagraj Sangam railway station was forced to shut down temporarily due to the overwhelming crowd.

The SP chief also accused the state government of concealing the true number of deaths in a stampede at the Maha Kumbh last month.

The Maha Kumbh, the world’s largest spiritual gathering, began on January 13 and is set to conclude on February 26, coinciding with Maha Shivaratri.

Yadav reiterated that the Waqf (Amendment) Bill tabled in Parliament was a tactic of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Central government to divert people’s attention from key issues to engage them in unnecessary debates and government’s “failure” to boost the economy.

“The government has now introduced the new legislation (referring to the Waqf Bill) to divert public attention from real issues and keep people engaged in unrelated debates,” he alleged.

“This is not a Waqf Amendment Bill; it is a ‘Waqf Eradication Bill’. All 14 provisions in this bill are against Waqf. The government wants to seize Waqf properties and use them for its own purposes,” the SP chief alleged.

Yadav repeated his charge against the Election Commission of India over the alleged irregularities in bypoll to Milkipur assembly seat.

“The Election Commission is dead. If the poll panel gives us a notice then it will provide us an opportunity to explain our stand and furnish the details of malpractices and irregularities committed during the bypoll to Milkipur assembly seat,” the SP chief said.

He also criticised the Union Budget 2025-26, stating that while the government claims to elevate India's economy from the fifth to the third position globally, the Budget has only led to disappointment. He also accused the National Democratic Alliance government of failing to support the manufacturing sector, rendering slogans like 'Make in India' ineffective.