Freedom of dissent in peril: Yashwant

| | Lucknow
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Freedom of dissent in peril: Yashwant

Friday, 12 October 2018 | PNS | Lucknow

At a function at Samajwadi Party office in Lucknow where former Union minister Yashwant Sinha was addressed as the new ‘JP’, the Bharatiya Janata Party rebel slammed the Narendra Modi government, saying that an Emergency-like situation prevailed in the country and freedom of dissent was in peril.

“The government is intimidating people who are opposing the wrong policies of the Modi Raj. Government agencies are persecuting them by raiding their houses and offices. This exactly happened during the Emergency. That time too, attempt was made to gag freedom of speech using methods which are being deployed this time too,” Sinha said.

Sinha, who attended Jai Prakash Narain’s birth anniversary function on Thursday, even blasted the media, saying that they too were biased towards the government.

Incidentally, Samajwadi Party patron Mulayam Singh Yadav did not attend the function, though BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav were in attendance.

“The situation in the country is going from bad to worse. Only those leaders stand benefited who try to be on the right side of the Modi government,” Sinha said.

Appreciating Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav for his initiative to fight against the BJP, the former Union minister said, “A mahagathbandan (grand alliance) for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls will throw up results like 1977 when the entire united opposition routed the then in power Congress.”

Without taking any names, Sinha said that the opposition would have to fight against Duryodhan and Dushshasan in the elections because a united opposition will certainly have an upper hand.

Speaking about the much-publicised Rafale fighter aircraft deal, Sinha said that it was surprising that the Defence Minister had no information about it like the Finance Minister did not know about demonetisation decision of the BJP government.

Paying tributes to late Jai Prakash Narain, Yashwant Sinha said that he got the opportunity to work with JP, former Prime Minister Chandrashekhar and even Mulayam Singh Yadav.

“We have to take a vow today in this function to fight against the corrupt and inefficient government at the Centre,” he said.

In his brief speech, BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha said that today was the anniversary of Sampurna Kranti hero Jai Prakash Narain and people were looking towards Yashwant Sinha because he had JP-like traits. He also lauded Akhilesh Yadav for providing effective governance.

Earlier, talking to the media, Sinha said that Samajwadi Party wanted him to contest the coming Lok Sabha poll under its banner.

In his address, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav criticised the anti-people policies of the BJP government. 

Yadav also slammed the BJP government in UP and claimed that the people of the state were suffering due to its misrule and also because of the deteriorating law and order.

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