Akhilesh urges for restraint after poster row, questions BJP's silence on similar acts
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Lucknow (PTI): Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav called for political restraint on Thursday, following a recent poster controversy involving B R Ambedkar's image.
Addressing a press conference here, Yadav said, "Lalchand Gautam is the same SP worker because of whom the entire Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was forced out of their air-conditioned rooms and onto the streets."
Gautam, the SP worker at the centre of a controversy over a social media post that depicted a merged image of Yadav and B R Ambedkar, was also present at the press conference.
The SP chief said he had personally met Gautam and advised him to refrain from creating or sharing any such content in the future that could hurt people's sentiments.
"I have explained it to him that he must never again make or share anything that might offend anyone," he said.
The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister further questioned that whether the BJP could exercise the same control over its leaders and workers.
"We have already guided our workers, but can the BJP do the same? Can it ensure that its leaders do not behave disrespectfully towards Babasaheb Ambedkar or any other great personality?" he asked.
Yadav also pointed out that similar imagery involving BJP leaders had surfaced in the past, but the SP chose not to politicise those incidents.
"Their (BJP) leaders' pictures were also there, but we never made an issue out of it," he said.
At the press conference, the SP reiterated to its supporters and workers not to draw comparisons between party leaders and national icons, a day after a controversial poster was put up outside its office here that featured the split faces of Yadav and Ambedkar.
The party, while thanking its supporters for their affection and dedication, expressed concern over the use of such imagery, which has sparked a political row.
"We wholeheartedly thank all our supporters and party workers for their love, affection and commitment," the SP said in a post on X earlier in the day.
"However, we make a very sensitive appeal that no leader of any party should ever be compared to or equated with any divine and venerable personality in any context," it added, cautioning against creating or circulating any images, idols, songs or statements that suggest such comparisons.
The SP leadership has been trying to woo the Dalits, once considered loyal to the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), and competing with the BJP for the support of the Other Backward Classes (OBC), considered the mainstay of the saffron party's phenomenal electoral gains in Uttar Pradesh since the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
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Teen killed in alleged honour killing over inter-community relationship, brother, his friend arrest
Manesar, Haryana: Police have arrested two men in connection with the sexual assault and murder of a 19-year-old woman in what investigators describe as a case of honour killing linked to her relationship with a man from another community.
According to the police, the crime was allegedly planned by the woman’s 28-year-old brother. He had sought the help of his 30-year-old friend to carry out the killing and the friend is accused of raping the young woman before murdering her.
The family, originally from Etah and Agra districts of Uttar Pradesh, had been living in Manesar, Haryana, for nearly six years, as reported by Hindustan Times. Police said tensions escalated after the brother discovered that his sister was in a relationship with a 24-year-old man from another community and intended to marry him. Opposed to the relationship, he sent her back to their family home in Etah on November 15.
The woman returned to Manesar on November 22 and began living with her partner. Assistant Commissioner of Police Virender Saini said this prompted the brother to plan killing her. Acting on his directions, the co-accused contacted the woman, posing as someone willing to help her elope and marry her partner.
Trusting him, the woman agreed to meet near Rampura Chowk on the night of December 10 and instead of assisting her, the accused allegedly took her to a secluded area in Gwalior. Police said she was sexually assaulted there and, when she resisted, was beaten and later strangled with her scarf. Her body was subsequently concealed under debris in a field.
Following the murder, both men fled to their native places. During the initial investigation, the brother allegedly tried to divert suspicion towards the woman’s boyfriend, who was briefly detained. He was later released after evidence established that the brother and his friend were present at the crime scene.
Police said the brother later confessed during questioning, while the co-accused acknowledged to the rape and murder. A case has been filed under the relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for murder, criminal conspiracy, and common intent. Officials stated that forensic evidence, such as DNA analysis, post-mortem discoveries, and medical tests, will be utilized to support the charges.
