Yogi Adityanath inaugurated the Noida-Greater Noida metro rail project

The Samajwadi Party on Friday used a variant of the popular Hindi idiom "Ram Ram japna paraya maal apna" to criticise the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh for apparently trying to take credit of the metro project in Greater Noida ahead of Lok Sabha polls.

The opposition party in Uttar Pradesh said the work on the metro project was started during the chief ministership of Akhilesh Yadav in 2016.

"The Noida metro line was delayed despite the completion of work for political mileage. But remember - this government only inaugurated it and not built it," SP leader and former minister Abhishek Mishra said on Twitter in Hindi.

"Ram Ram Japna #ParayaKaamApna - nothing describes the present government more accurately than this phrase," he said in another tweet.

The idiom refers to a situation when credit for something done by a person is taken by someone else.

Mr Mishra also said Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath "re-inaugurated" the metro project in 2017 after its actual inauguration in 2017, and now he was launching it.

Several other SP leaders also tweeted using #ParayaKaamApna.

What's all the fuss about? @yadavakhilesh started work on the Noida Aqua Line. All that the current government has done is delayed its inauguration owing to unavailability of its 'star campaigners' causing inconvenience to the people of Noida. Ram Ram Japna #ParayaKaamApna - Naved siddiqui (@Navedpost) January 25, 2019

There's a big difference between 'doing work' and 'inaugurating' someone else's work. But a government that believes in the politics of 'changing names' will never get it. Ram Ram Japna #ParayaKaamApnapic.twitter.com/U6yrOufswS - Abdul Hafiz Gandhi (अब्दुल हफीज़ गाँधी ) (@hafizgandhi) January 25, 2019

SP leaders have also tweeted photographs of Yogi Adityanath dressed in a saffron attire and sitting with lotus (the election symbol of his party) in his hand. He is shown thinking about the metro project and the phrase "Ram Ram japna paraya kaam apna" written on the photograph.

Earlier on Friday, Yogi Adityanath inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of infrastructure projects worth a little over Rs 1,400 crore in Noida and Greater Noida.

During a visit to Gautam Buddh Nagar, he also inaugurated the Noida-Greater Noida metro rail project, which is at the centre of the SP's attack on the ruling party.

Responding to the criticism, BJP spokesperson Shalabh Mani Tripathi said SP leaders are "disturbed" as names of its leaders are propping up in connection with scams.

"They should try to find out that the CM had inaugurated/laid foundation of projects of over Rs 1400 crore in Gautam Buddh Nagar today," Mr Tripathi said.

"Their (SP's) slogan ''kaam bolta hai'' during 2017 assembly polls was discarded by the people of the state as they knew the reality. Our government is committed to the development of the state and people understand this," he added.