“Are the engines colliding?”: Akhilesh Yadav Slams Yogi Adityanath Over Kumbh Stampede, Accuses him of “Hiding the Truth”

Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav launched a scathing attack on the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh during a speech in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. Speaking during the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address, Yadav questioned the state government's handling of the recent stampede that claimed 30 lives at the Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj.

The Kannauj MP criticised the Uttar Pradesh administration's failure to release the accurate death toll, which he claimed was initially underreported. "Those claiming to have organised a Digital Kumbh could not give the digits of those killed in the stampede," he said, adding, "Someone lost parents, someone a daughter, someone siblings. The figure of children is still missing."

The stampede, which occurred during the rush for a holy dip on the banks of the Ganga, led to at least 30 confirmed deaths and 60 injuries. Yadav condemned the alleged delay in acknowledging the deaths, demanding an investigation and an official report to be submitted in Parliament. “Hiding the truth is a crime. Who will serve the punishment for this?” he questioned.

He also accused the UP government of focusing more on publicity than on proper arrangements for the religious event. "The government’s publicity at a religious gathering is condemnable," Yadav said. He expressed disbelief at the government's actions, stating that "when it was known that people had died, the government loaded a helicopter with flowers and dropped them," calling the gesture inappropriate.

Yadav further criticised the Chief Minister, stating that Yogi Adityanath did not express grief over the incident until both the President and Prime Minister did. "The state government accepted after 17 hours. These are people who cannot accept the truth," he added.

The SP leader also took issue with the government's handling of religious traditions. He accused the BJP government of asking saints to cancel the traditional 'shahi snan' during the Kumbh, thus breaking an age-old custom. "When this matter was raised, they ordered the akharas to proceed with the shahi snan. They broke the sanatan tradition," he said.

Akhilesh Yadav’s remarks extended to the broader governance issues in Uttar Pradesh, where he questioned the government's economic claims. "Uttar Pradesh hosted a huge investment meet. How much of the MoUs worth Rs 40,000 crore has been implemented on the ground? Are the two engines colliding with each other?" he asked, referring to the government’s push for business investments.

Finally, addressing the state of India’s economy, he criticised the lack of focus on the manufacturing sector, noting that China had gained an advantage in the market. "If the required focus would have been on the manufacturing sector, we would have surged ahead of China," he said.​