Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav  hit out at the Uttar Pradesh government over the recent Kanpur accident and blamed the poor condition of roads for it.

In an official statement, Yadav alleged that road accident victims are not even getting ambulances under the Yogi Adityanath-led government in the state. “People who were injured in the Kanpur accident were taken to hospitals on motorcycles,” he added.

At least 26 people were killed and several critically injured after a tractor-trolley overturned and fell into a pond near a village in Kanpur district yesterday.

The Samajwadi Party chief said that roads across UP are in shambles and are marred with deep potholes.

“It is sad that the public is bearing the brunt of the failures of the BJP government,” he said in the statement, adding, “Lives are being lost and the government is uninformed, it is a matter of grave concern.”

Akhilesh Yadav has demanded financial assistance of Rs 50 lakh each to the kin of the dead and Rs 5 lakh each to the injured from the state government.

Meanwhile, a station house officer was suspended for alleged “dereliction of duty” while the tractor driver was still absconding.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath met the injured at the hospital and the bereaved families at Kortha village yesterday.

The loss of lives in road accidents is a matter of grave concern and the government would launch more awareness programmes on road safety to prevent such tragedies, he said and again appealed to people not to use tractor-trolly to ferry passengers.