Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday slammed the Uttar Pradesh government over a bill that seeks to amend the Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, accusing it of trying to divert people's attention through communal politics.

“What else do they have, they are not doing anything new,” he told reporters outside Parliament when asked about the bill that has been listed for discussion and passage in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly.

They are trying to divert attention of the people through communal politics, he charged.

Under the amended provisions of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Bill, 2024, if a person threatens, attacks, marries or promises to marry or conspires for it, or traffics a woman, minor or anyone with the intention of conversion, then his crime will be placed in the most serious category.

The former chief minister said the Centre is constructing an expressway from Buxar to Bhagalpur and if a 25 km stretch is added, one will be able to go from Delhi to Bhagalpur directly but the Uttar Pradesh government has not put forth this demand, he said.

Referring to the controversy over displaying names of eatery owners along the kanwar yatra route, he said, “They just want Hindus and Muslims to fight, and people are busy with such debates. ....it is a matter of practising untouchability. Will they bring a law on untouchability as well".

Samajwadi MP from Faizabad Awadhesh Prasad spoke on similar lines, and said the government is trying to divert attention from issues of livelihood.

“Prime Minister Modi ji also comes from Uttar Pradesh, but the situation of the state is very bad at present. Farmers are spending nights in fields, not at home... Stray animals have killed many farmers… Issues like paper leak, price rise, unemployment are the issues faced by people,” he said.

“Transformers get burnt and are not changed, farmers are unable to sow paddy… To distract from all this, they are talking about ‘Love Jihad’, conversion, so that their failures are not discussed, that is their aim,” he said.

“Religion based politics will not work in this country, by making me win, people have given the message that communal politics will not work,” said the MP, who was elected from Faizabad, the constituency that covers Ayodhya where the Ram Temple was consecrated.

Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) MP Chandrashekhar also accused the Uttar Pradesh government of trying to distract people’s attention from main issues.

“Government is not able to fulfil the basic needs of people. They are unable to provide food, shelter, and housing… good health, good education, but they are totally focused on such issues because it suits them,” he said.

“For us employment and price rise are the issues. So we are working on it,” he said.

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