Lucknow: Hours after the inauguration of Nishulk Ration Vitaran Mahaabhiyaan', the Congress on Sunday mounted an attack on the BJP governments in Uttar Pradesh and at the Centre, and termed the distribution of food packets with photos of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, as ridiculing the poor.
The opposition Samajwadi Party also termed the entire exercise as "branding of the BJP ahead of the assembly polls". The Nishulk Ration Vitaran Mahaabhiyaan or free ration distribution campaign intends to provide ration to about 15 crore people. Under the new initiative, beneficiaries will get a kilogram each of edible oil and salt in addition to the food grains. Antyodaya cardholders on the other hand will get a kilogram each of sugar and pulses.
"This seems to be a publicity stunt by the BJP government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi (at the Centre) and by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath (in UP). In fact, this has ridiculed the poor people. There is job loss following the COVID-19 pandemic. But, instead of generating jobs, they are giving food packets to the people. This is like rubbing the salt into the wounds of the poor people. They (BJP) are trying to play with the self-respect of the poor, UP Congress spokesperson Ashok Singh told PTI.
Pointing to the photographs of Modi and Adityanath on the packets of gram, refined oil and edible salt distributed under the campaign, Samajwadi Party MLC Ashutosh Sinha said, "The bag carrying the foodgrains is more expensive than the foodgrains inside it. This is purely a branding exercise ahead of the 2022 UP Assembly elections, since they know very well that they have not done any work for the past five years.