Cough Syrup Controversy: Political Unrest in Uttar Pradesh

Akhilesh Yadav, leader of the Samajwadi Party, calls out Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's denial of deaths linked to codeine cough syrup as misleading. Allegations of a massive scam involving the syrup emerge, with claims of rewarded vehicles linked to the racket and accusations of governmental deceit.

In a heated political exchange, Akhilesh Yadav, president of the Samajwadi Party, dismissed Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's denial of fatalities tied to codeine-based cough syrup as a 'blatant lie.' Yadav accused the BJP of perpetrating deceit and deflecting attention from an alleged major scandal involving the syrup.

Yadav, in a social media post, criticized the BJP regime for supposedly trivializing a multibillion-rupee racket by offering minimal rewards for arrests while ignoring the alleged gifting of expensive vehicles to those involved. He further alleged that the government consistently failed to disclose details of these vehicles despite demands from his party.

Chief Minister Adityanath countered these claims in the Assembly, asserting that no deaths have been reported due to fake medicines or codeine syrup. He highlighted legal actions under the NDPS Act and associated the Samajwadi Party with the accused, defending his stance on illegal syrup diversion rather than adulteration.

(With inputs from agencies.)