Lucknow, Dec. 20 -- / Gorakhpur Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Friday hit out at Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav who has accused the BJP government of shielding those involved in the codeine-based cough syrup diversion racket.

Speaking at a press conference before the start of the state legislature's winter session, the chief minister said, "There are photos of the SP chief with the mafia involved in codeine smuggling. It's clear that there might have been a deal between the SP chief and the mafia. The financial trail of illegal trafficking will be unearthed during the probe."

Hours later in Gorakhpur, Adityanath again attacked the SP, asserting that family-centric politics and mafia patronage cannot accelerate deve...