LUCKNOW, May 27 -- Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday alleged that the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh was using what he termed 'fake encounters' to spread fear and hide its failures. Yadav also alleged that the government was using them as a political tool to appease its core supporters. He said it was a dangerous and unconstitutional practice that undermines democracy, Constitution and social harmony. "Incidents of fake encounter damage the state's law and order image, scare away investments, and malign the government's image," Yadav said at a press conference at the party headquarters in Lucknow. "The governments which orchestrate fake encounters are ultimately rejected by the people. This is why democracy has survived till today," the Samajwadi Party chief said. He highlighted several alleged negative impacts of fake encounters, including severe mental trauma suffered by police personnel involved in such operations. He called upon the people to reject this 'culture of fear' and strengthen democratic values. Yadav also gave a presentation alleging that around 60% of those killed in police encounters in 2024 were from the PDA (Pichda, Dalit and Alpsankhyak) community while 19% were from other communities and data for the remaining 21% was unavailable. He further alleged that out of 24 cases where bulldozer action was carried out, 22 were against the PDA community. The Samajwadi Party president claimed that out of the total undertrial prisoners in UP jails, 75% were from the PDA community....