Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had arbitrarily given away the coveted "Yash Bharti" awards to 53 persons, in contravention to the laid down rules for selection of awardees, according to an RTI response.

As per the information given by the state Culture Department, in response to an RTI poser by activist Nutan Thakur, the "Screening Committee" had recommended 54 names for the award at its October 20, 2016 meeting. The names were forwarded to then Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav by Culture Minister Aruna Kumari Kori.