BJP and Opposition Clash Over Alleged Fake Encounters in Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh's Deputy Chief Minister, Brajesh Pathak, and BJP face-off against Samajwadi Party's Akhilesh Yadav over claims of fake encounters targeting marginalized communities. Pathak defends law enforcement, asserting improvements in law and order since 2017, while Congress’s Rahul Gandhi criticizes the BJP government's 'thoko policy'.

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Brajesh Pathak has rebuked the Samajwadi Party (SP) following allegations by its chief, Akhilesh Yadav, who accused the ruling BJP government of turning Uttar Pradesh into the 'capital of fake encounters'. Pathak emphasized that since 2017, law and order in Uttar Pradesh has significantly improved, boasting that the general public now lives in a fair and fear-free environment.

Yadav had earlier accused the government of targeting marginalized groups, including Pichde, Dalit & Alpasankhyak (PDA) families, in various police encounters. He claimed that the government has made Uttar Pradesh the capital of fake encounters, raising concerns over the integrity of the state's law enforcement.

Addressing a recent encounter in Sultanpur, Pathak remarked that opposition parties are wrongfully portraying the involved criminals as their own. He stated that the suspects were either killed or arrested during the police encounter, adding that Samajwadi Party has been asserting these incidents are caste-based. Pathak maintained that thorough investigations and evidence gathering led to the arrests.

Pathak also shared details of the Sultanpur robbery incident, where criminals were apprehended with over two and a half kilograms of recovered gold, and one suspect was killed during an encounter. Rahul Gandhi of Congress joined the criticism, condemning the BJP's approach to law enforcement and dubbing it the 'thoko policy'. Gandhi questioned the lack of accountability for officers involved in the controversial encounters and called the BJP's adherence to the Constitution into question.

(With inputs from agencies.)