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Uttar Pradesh: BJP government stands firmly with traders, says deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya
Uttar Pradesh deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya has advised the opposition to not engage in ‘politics’ on the issue of traders
Deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on Wednesday said the BJP government stood firmly with the traders and said anyone harassing them won’t be spared. He also advised the opposition to not engage in “politics” on the issue.
“Traders are the most respected part of BJP family. They have played a key part in forming BJP governments at the Centre and in the state. The government stands firmly with them,” Keshav Prasad Maurya tweeted.
“Any official, government employee found harassing them needlessly would face action. The opposition should desist from engaging in politics on the issue,” Keshav Prasad Maurya added.
“Jab thay sarkaar main, gundon ke sardar thay (When in government, they patronised criminals),” Maurya said in response to opposition leaders, including Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Rashtriya Lok Dal president Jayant Chaudhary and now, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati, tweeting support to traders and slamming the government over GST surveys.
After a series of statewide protests, that included agitations and market closure, the GST surveys have been temporarily put off, traders said. The traders had also met defence minister Rajnath Singh, also the Lucknow MP, on the subject in Delhi and said Singh had assured them that no trader would be harassed.
The government has said that GST surveys were targeted only at those who are evading taxes. “The opposition is engaged in politics. They are trying to confuse traders ahead of the urban local body polls but they must know that like the deputy CM said, the traders are an integral part of BJP and politics won’t change this reality,” said U.P. BJP leader Navin Srivastava.
