Over 26,000 government primary schools shut in U.P. after BJP came to power: Akhilesh Yadav
Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav has alleged that the Uttar Pradesh government has closed over 26,000 primary schools since 2017. He claims these closures disproportionately affect marginalized communities and are part of a broader trend of declining enrollment and teaching staff.
Why it matters
The claims highlight ongoing political debates regarding public education access and government accountability in India's most populous state.
Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday (August 2, 2026) said the current administration in Uttar Pradesh has shut down more than 26,000 government primary schools since assuming power in 2017, alleging that this was done to deny education to children from the PDA (Backwards, Dalit, Minority) communities.
Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters in Lucknow, Mr. Yadav said the Samajwadi Party would raise the issue during the Monsoon Session of the Assembly, which would begin on Monday (August 2).
The former Chief Minister claimed that according to official data, Uttar Pradesh had 1,13,938 government primary schools until March 2017, when the BJP came to power. More than 26,000 of them have been closed ever since, he said.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in