Akhilesh targets BJP after ED raids Azam-linked premises
Hours after the Enforcement Directorate searched premises linked to jailed SP leader Azam Khan, Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday sought similar action in several alleged corruption cases involving the BJP government and its functionaries.
The Samajwadi Party chief demanded ED action in cases relating to the alleged theft of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, illegal stocking and supply of codeine-based syrups, and alleged irregularities in infrastructure projects.
The ED on Wednesday searched around 10 premises linked to the Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust and the university established by Khan in Rampur and Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh and Delhi's Jamia Nagar as part of a money laundering investigation.
According to ED officials, the probe pertains to the alleged diversion of government contract funds through private contractors and their subsequent utilisation, including for creating assets of the trust and the university.
Reacting to the searches, Yadav alleged that the agency was targeting those who built universities while ignoring several other cases involving people linked to the BJP.
"The BJP and its associates, who are anti-education, anti-teacher and anti-student and who are shutting down schools, are conducting ED raids against those who build universities to satisfy their remaining 1-2 per cent communal, narrow-minded and argumentative supporters," he said in a post on X.
Yadav also questioned the condition of several infrastructure projects in Uttar Pradesh and demanded action against those responsible for what he described as poor construction and alleged financial irregularities.
He referred to the "dilapidated Bundelkhand Expressway", the "shaking Purvanchal Expressway", the "pothole-ridden Kanpur-Lucknow Expressway" and the "cracked Green Corridor".
His list also included "broken roads", "collapsing bridges", "collapsing water tanks", "leaking roofs" and a "station wall" constructed during the BJP government's tenure.
The SP chief further demanded action against "corrupt policemen backed by the BJP government", as well as contractors allegedly involved in irregularities during the Maha Kumbh.
Yadav accused BJP-linked contractors of siphoning off Rs 1 lakh crore during the Maha Kumbh and demanded action against those who allegedly carried out a "multi-trillion-rupee game" in the name of Smart Cities. The allegations have not been established.
He also accused BJP lawmakers of illegal constructions and alleged that officials distributed Rs 7,000 crore among themselves after "covering up misconduct and abusive remarks through publicity".
Yadav also sought ED raids against "Ram temple thieves", "power-linked criminals" and those involved in the "codeine scandal".
The Lucknow-headquartered Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust has Khan as its main trustee along with some family members and associates. It runs the Muhammad Ali Jauhar University, founded in 2006, and a public school in Rampur.
The ED's searches are part of an investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The allegations being investigated by the agency have not been established in court.
