Rahul Gandhi accuses UP ministers of 'patronising' criminals

Bareilly: Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday accused the ministers in the Akhilesh Yadav government in Uttar Pradesh of "patronising" criminals, saying this was the reason why the law and order situation had collapsed in the state.

"Crime has increased as it is being patronised by the higher-ups. Hooligans are being patronised by ministers in the Uttar Pradesh government. This is the reason behind the poor law and order situation in the state," he told the students of Rohilkhand University during an interactive session with them.

Girl students of the university told the Gandhi scion that they did not feel safe as hooligans and eve-teasers bothered them regularly.

Rahul reacted saying, "The law and order of the state is the worst. What else can be expected in this jungle raj."

Mounting an attack on the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) in the state, he said, "The cycle's (election symbol of the SP) wheel is stuck. It has not been moving and as a result, the development of Uttar Pradesh has stopped."

During his roadshow in the city, the Amethi MP visited a temple in the cantonment area and a gurdwara.

He also visited Ala Hazrat Dargah and addressed meetings where he attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and alleged that he "only served the interests of industrialists".

During the roadshow, some persons tried to hand over a memorandum of their demands to him but were prevented by the security personnel which led to sharp exchange of words between the two sides.