Samajwadi Party National President Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday alleged that several close associates of the Chief Minister and state government officials are linked to a codeine-containing cough syrup syndicate. He urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take cognisance of the issue and ensure strict action.
“This issue is linked to the Prime Minister’s parliamentary constituency, where 38 cases have been filed so far. It is the moral duty of the local MP to ensure action against the culprits”, Yadav said in a statement.
He said the codeine-containing cough syrup syndicate has expanded its smuggling network not only across various districts of the state but also to Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, West Bengal, as well as Nepal, Bangladesh, and South Africa.
“This banned narcotic syrup has claimed many innocent lives. The “one district, one mafia” illegal network is rampant in the state. Moreover, the names of local mafias involved in the toxic cough syrup trade are emerging,” he said.
Akhilesh Yadav said, “Raja Anand Jyoti Singh, Vice President of the Central Bar Association in Varanasi, died a year ago after consuming the same cough syrup. His wife, Bharti Singh, filed a complaint, but the police took no action. Mafias from a particular caste are running illegal businesses there and have amassed millions of rupees in illegal earnings, while the so-called zero tolerance and bulldozers are nowhere to be seen. The banned syrup trade has flourished in Purvanchal with the patronage of senior figures in Varanasi, Jaunpur, Chandauli, Bhadohi, Ghazipur, and Azamgarh,” the SP president said while targeting the BJP government.
Akhilesh Yadav said, “The entry of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) into the codeine syrup scandal makes it clear that the country’s second-most powerful leader is closely monitoring the matter. It’s a common rumour that he dislikes the strongman from Varanasi’s neighbouring district, so the second-most powerful leader in the central government has his sights set on the matter as soon as his name comes up. The investigation so far has revealed that Shubham, the kingpin of the codeine trade, was in partnership with his relatives in one of the strongman’s businesses and had invested ₹84 crore. He also gifted them expensive vehicles.”
The SP president further said, “Not only this, another information has come to light that a disciple of a Varanasi strongman has also amassed crores of rupees in the name of a business. In the name of protecting Shubham’s business, the ruling party took expensive gifts and lakhs of rupees from him every month.”
“If the CBI carries out an unbiased investigation, several white-collar offenders will be left red-faced,” he remarked.