'Mulayam's claim on Dadri episode to cover up SP govt's failure'

New Delhi, Jan 28: BJP today hit back at Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav over his claim that three BJP leaders were involved in the Dadri lynching episode and termed it as an attempt to "cover-up" the failures of the Uttar Pradesh government.

"The statement was made to deflect the attention of people from the real problems of the state ahead of the polls. The law and order has worsened under the SP government of four years," BJP national secretary Shrikant Sharma said told reporters.

BJP's reaction came after Yadav claimed that at least three men involved in the Dadri killing belonged to BJP and he can reveal their names if Prime Minister Narendra Modi asks him to.

"The Government's own figures say that crime against women has increased by 50 per cent in the state. 22 cases of rape have been reported where policemen are involved and there have been 622 attacks on police by goons. The party should rather focus on improving its governance than blaming others," Sharma said.

He said the report submitted by the state administration to the central government on the Dadri matter does not talk about any "conspiracy" or "beef". He wondered whether the report was wrong or the claim made by Yadav was incorrect.

"Their (state government's) report to the central government on the matter did not mention words like 'conspiracy' or 'beef'. So how can they give such statements now...It shows their frustration and fear of losing the power in polls," he said.

PTI