The Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party today lashed out at the Uttar Pradesh government for "wasting" funds in the name of a business summit and termed it a "gimmick" ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, due next year.
"The investors' summits have become a fashion for BJP governments to spend people's hard-earned money like water... It could have been put to better use for providing the much-required help to the poor, downtrodden and youth, among others," BSP president Mayawati said about the two-day UP Investors' Summit 2018, which ended yesterday.
Terming the summit an attempt by the BJP government to divert people's attention from problems like inflation and unemployment, the BSP chief said: "It seems that governments consider holding summits as the biggest service to the people and the means to resolve all pressing problems."
The BSP supremo expressed fears that unless the state government improves law and order, no investor would be investing in the state and the UP summit might eventually turn out to be a "political showbiz".
"The law and order cannot improve only through police encounters... The government has not taken concrete steps to check the 'jungle raj' and 'mafia raj' created by its own people, but has wrongfully tried to withdraw criminal cases against its leaders and ministers. This policy of withdrawing cases will further spoil the law and order situation," she said.
Stressing that providing peace and security is the responsibility of any government, Mayawati alleged that BJP governments have failed to do so because their intentions and policies are guided by "hatred, violence, communalism and casteism".
"The government is trying to mislead people by claiming that MoUs worth crores have been signed... How can any businessman set up units in all BJP-ruled states to please BJP leaders," she asked.
The Samajwadi Party, too, attacked the state government terming the summit a "gimmick" ahead of the 2019 general elections.
"The Lok Sabha polls are near and instead of fulfilling promises in its election manifesto, the BJP is trying to mislead people by organising such an event. Crores of rupees were spent on beautification, security only to take credit and mislead. It was not a investor summit, but an attempt for political gains in LS elections," an SP spokesperson told reporters.
BJP state president Mahendra Nath Pandey, however, refuted the allegations and maintained that the summit was a success.
"The successful organisation of the summit has shown the honest intentions of state government towards development of the state," Pandey said.
"The state was facing issues of law and order and corruption... With the BJP government in place, the situation have started improving for economic growth of the state," he said, claiming that investment proposals worth crores show the encouraging response of investors.
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