The political slugfest over revelation of unauthorised investment of over Rs 2,600 crore of power employees provident fund in the tainted Dewan Housing Finance Corporation (DHFL) by UP Power Corporation Limited between March, 2017 and December, 2018 continued unabated with the Bharatiya Janata Party stepping up its attack on Samajwadi Party chief and former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav.

Minister of State for Basic Education, Satish Chandra Dwivedi, attacked Akhilesh Yadav saying, “The EPF scam in UPPCL is the result of corrupt practices of the Samajwadi Party government.”

The minister defended Energy Minister Shrikant Sharma saying, “The BJP government not only unravelled the scam but was also bringing the guilty to justice.”

Dwivedi alleged that the SP chief was now making false allegations against the Energy Minister and the Chief Minister as he knew that he stood exposed.

Contradicting the charges levelled by the SP chief, Dwivedi said, “Following the policy of zero tolerance towards corruption, the Yogi Adityanath government not only lodged an FIR and arrested three UPPCL officers, it also recommended a CBI probe into the scam.”

Until the CBI formally takes over the probe, the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of UP Police would probe the case. The government has announced it would cooperate with the Enforcement Directorate’s investigation as well.

Soon after the news became public, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav took to social media and attacked the Yogi government, questioning its integrity and demanded a high-level probe.

Total investment by two UPPCL entities amounts to nearly Rs 4,100 crore in different branches. Part of the money, close to Rs 1,800 crore, was repaid by DHFL, leaving around Rs 2,300 crore to be recouped from the beleaguered firm.

Energy Minister Shrikant Sharma targeted Akhilesh Yadav over the scam and claimed that the seeds of the scam were sown during the SP regime, dating back to April 2014.