Akhilesh government a total failure Smriti Irani

Lucknow, Feb 4: Union Textiles Minister Smriti Irani on Saturday charged the Akhilesh Yadav government in Uttar Pradesh with failing on all fronts, especially safeguarding the interests and honour of women.

Addressing reporters at the party headquarters here, Irani also said the Samajwadi Party government in the state had not utilised funds sent by the central government.

"On many occasions, I have written to the Chief Minister but got no response... it was suggested that the state government is not serious about welfare programmes like the Swacch Bharat Mission," she said.

On the issue of triple talaq, she said: "I, Priyanka Vadra and Dimple Yadav were of the same age and should come together to elaborate on the issue."

She, however, added in the same breath the free thought process was blocked by vote bank politics where leaders only react when it is to their benefit.

"Are rights of Hindu women and Muslims different?" she questioned while adding in Uttar Pradesh, FIRs were not lodged in police stations, women are being gang-raped and eve teasing has become an order of the day.

Listing various promises made by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in its manifesto for the assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, she said that after it was voted to power, these would be implemented in a fixed time frame.