BJP failed even at municipal level: Akhilesh slams govt over 'contaminated water' cases in Guj, MP

Lucknow, Jan 6 (PTI) Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday launched a sharp attack on the BJP after reports of suspected typhoid cases linked to contaminated drinking water emerged in Gujarat's capital Gandhinagar, alleging that the ruling party had failed even at the municipal level.

The Gujarat episode follows the case in Madhya Pradesh's Indore where multiple deaths were reported allegedly due to contaminated water -- both states governed by the BJP.

Referring to a news clip image he shared on X citing over 100 suspected typhoid cases in parts of Gandhinagar due to polluted water supply, Yadav said that after Indore in Madhya Pradesh, people were now falling ill in Gandhinagar under the BJP's "triple-engine government".

"The BJP cannot even manage a municipality. How will it run a state or the country?" Yadav said in his post, alleging that corruption under the BJP had led to the deterioration of basic civic services such as drinking water.

The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister claimed that incidents of contaminated water and collapsing water tanks were regularly being reported due to corruption, asserting that the slogan "Jal hi jeevan hai" (water is life) had turned into "jal se jeevan ko khatra hai" (water threatens life) under the BJP rule.

Taking aim at the party's governance claims, the central lawmaker said that while the BJP was citing old localities as an excuse in Indore, it would be difficult to justify the situation in Gandhinagar, where new pipelines were laid under the Smart City project.

"If this is the 'Gujarat model of development', then the country does not want either the BJP or its model," he said, adding, "If the BJP goes (out of power), lives will be saved." PTI KIS KSS KSS