Opposition parties attack Adityanath govt. over audio clip

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday asked for an inquiry report on a purported audio clip in which State Minister Swati Singh allegedly threatened a police officer here.

“A report in this connection has been sought from the SSP, Lucknow, and will be submitted to the Chief Minister at the earliest,” State DGP O.P. Singh said.

In the audio clip that surfaced on social media, the Minister can be heard questioning Lucknow Cantt. Circle Officer Binu Singh about an FIR filed against Ansal Developers and expressing displeasure over it.

Zero tolerance?

The Opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, have attacked the Adityanath government over the clip, questioning its claim of zero tolerance on corruption.

In the audio clip, Ms. Singh can be heard telling the CO that a ‘fake case’ had been filed and that there were orders from the ‘higher-ups’ that no case will be registered against the Ansals. She is also apparently saying that the case in question is a high-profile one and that the Chief Minister is aware of it. She is heard asking the CO to ‘sit with her’ and resolve the matter if she wanted to continue working.

The Samajwadi Party, in a tweet, said: “The matter is high profile and is under the cognizance of the Chief Minister. What inquiry will you do? ‘Come and sit down’ is this the zero tolerance for corruption which the Chief Minister is not tired of speaking about? Shame!.”