"You wanted to convert Varanasi into Kyoto, build Smart Cities...": Akhilesh Yadav sherds BJP over Maha Kumbh stampede

New Delhi [India], February 1 (ANI): Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav slammed the Uttar Pradesh government over the preparations for Maha Kumbh 2025, and alleged that many devotees are returning back without taking a dip in the Triveni Sangam.
Pointing to BJP's past promise of 'Smart City' and turning Varanasi into Kyoto, he asked what facilities are being provided in the cities.
Attacking the Yogi government, the former Chief Minister asked for whom is the budget if it could not handle so many devotees.
"Many Mahakumbh devotees are returning back without taking a dip in Triveni Sangam. For whom has this budget come? Your (Govt) cities and roads do not have the capacity to handle so many people (Mahakumbh devotees). You want to convert Varanasi into Kyoto. Does it have the capacity to handle devotees over lakhs? Cities have choked. How is your infrastructure in cities? You were building Smart India and smart cities. What arrangements are you (BJP) providing?" Yadav said lashing out at the BJP.
Earlier in the day, Samajwadi Party MPs staged a walkout from the Lok Sabha during the Union Budget presentation.
Akhilesh Yadav claimed that the lives lost in the Maha Kumbh stampede are "more significant" than the official figures.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2025 in the Lok Sabha today outlining a roadmap for India's continued economic expansion, emphasizing agriculture, micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), investment, and exports.
Speaking to the media, Yadav criticized the government over the handling of the Maha Kumbh, stating that the death toll from the recent stampede is being misreported.
"Maha Kumbh comes after 12 years. For us, the data of people who died in the stampede in Maha Kumbh is more important than the budget data. The government is not able to tell how many people died, went missing or got injured. The death toll that has been given by the government is false," Yadav said.
"What arrangements have you made? This government says that we are a party of Hindus but they are not able to make arrangements for this biggest festival of Hindus...Is this your definition of a Viksit Bharat that people will die in a stampede," he added.
The stampede occurred during the Mauni Amavasya bathing ritual on Wednesday and resulted in the death of 30 people and left several more injured.
A three-member judicial commission, formed to investigate the stampede that occurred during the Mauni Amavasya bathing ritual on Wednesday, visited Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital in Prayagraj.
The commission is tasked with examining the causes and circumstances of the tragedy and will submit its report within a month. (ANI)