Bahujan Samaj Party president Mayawati on Sunday targeted the Central government for discontinuing the free food grain distribution to the poor.
She asked the Centre not to stop the free ration being given to the poor under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, started during the COVID-19 pandemic, citing inflation.
The former chief minister of UP said that it would be unfair to the poor if the distribution of free ration was stopped.
Through a series of tweets on Sunday, Mayawati said, "The huge population of the country is still almost as sad and stricken by the problem of inflation, poverty, unemployment etc. as it was during the time of coronavirus (pandemic). It would be unfair and unjust to snatch a bite from the mouth (of the poor)."
Mayawati said in another tweet that this was the main reason why the governments of various states were exerting pressure on the Central government to continue this food scheme for some more time after September.
“The BSP demands that the Central government should pay due and sympathetic attention to this scheme, keeping in view the wider public interest,” she said.
The Central and state governments had extended the free ration scheme by three months till September. Now, the government has announced not to further extend the free food grain distribution scheme. All the state governments are subsequently putting pressure on the Central government to continue this scheme.