‘Akhilesh kin’s NGO got 86 per cent goshala grant’

Lucknow: To the world, differences between former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and his step brother’s wife, Aparna Yadav, may have been deep-rooted but an RTI query has revealed that it was Aparna Yadav’s NGO that benefitted the most in the Akhilesh regime.

According to a response to an RTI query by activist Nutan Thakur, during the Akhilesh Yadav regime, 86 per cent of the total grant given by Uttar Pradesh Go Sewa Ayog to “goshala” and cow protection organisations in the state went to Aparna Yadav’s Jeev Ashraya, an NGO, running Kanha Upwan Goshala and owned by Lucknow Nagar Nigam.

As per the response, from 2012 to 2017, the Ayog gave a total grant of Rs 9.66 crore, out of which Rs 8.35 crore was given to Jeev Ashraya, which is 86.4 per cent of the total grant.

During financial years 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15, Jeev Ashraya was the only NGO to be given this grant to the tune of Rs 50 lakh, Rs 1.25 crore and Rs 1.41 crore, respectively.

In financial year 2015-16, Jeev Ashraya got Rs 2.58 crore while Sripad Baba Goshala, Vrindavan, got Rs 41 lakh, and in 2016-17, of the total grant of Rs 3.45 crore, Jeev Ashraya got Rs 2.55 crore.

It may be recalled that immediately after the formation of the Yogi Adityanath government, Aparna Yadav and her husband Prateek Yadav had met the chief minister and invited him to visit Kanha Upvan.

The chief minister visited the cow shelter two days later and appreciated the work being done by the couple.

Despite efforts, Aparna Yadav could not be contacted for her comment.