BJP govt in UP attacking basic spirit of Constitution with dictatorial attitude: Akhilesh Yadav
Lucknow (PTI): Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday accused the BJP-led Uttar Pradesh government of "murdering democracy" and said that police stopping a party delegation from travelling to Bareilly at its behest is condemnable.
In a statement, the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister alleged that the BJP government is acting unconstitutional and undemocratic.
"The BJP government is resorting to dictatorship to hide its failures. The government is attacking the basic spirit of the Constitution with its dictatorial attitude," he said.
On Saturday, police stopped a delegation of Samajwadi Party leaders from travelling to Bareilly.
In the morning, Leader of Opposition in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly, Mata Prasad Pandey, was stopped by police personnel stationed outside his Lucknow residence when he moved towards his private vehicle to travel to the violence-hit city.
In a statement, Samajwadi Party spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary said that police placed all members of the party delegation under house arrest. This included Mata Prasad Pandey; Lok Sabha MPs Harendra Malik, Iqra Hasan Choudhary, Ziaur Rahman Barq, Mohibullah Nadvi and Neeraj Maurya; former MPs Virpal Singh Yadav, Praveen Singh Aron and Shivcharan Kashyap; MLAs Ataur Rahman and Shahzil Islam Ansari; former minister Bhagwat Sharan Gangwar, and party leaders Shamim Khan Sultani and Shubhalesh Yadav.
This is condemnable and shameful, Akhilesh Yadav said.
"Just recently, a delegation led by senior Samajwadi Party leader and Rajya Sabha member Ramji Lal Suman was stopped," he said.
It is surprising that the district magistrate, citing prohibitory orders, has now prevented the Leader of the Opposition and the Samajwadi Party delegation from going to Bareilly, he added.
Yadav said the BJP government "should understand that it will achieve nothing by using its repression against the people of Bareilly."
He said the PDA (Backward, Dalit, Minority) has awakened, and the BJP's injustice and oppression will not stand in the face of PDA unity.
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Lebanon appoints new representative for talks with Israel, rejects linkage to Iran
Beirut: Lebanon’s has moved to underline its independent position in ongoing regional developments, amid attempts to link the country to the broader conflict involving Iran, the United States and Israel.
President Joseph Aoun, while announcing the appointment of former US ambassador Simon Karam as Lebanon’s representative in talks with Israel, made it clear that Karam would be the sole representative for Lebanon and that there would be no substitute.
The move comes in response to what the Lebanese officials see as efforts by Iran to tie Lebanon’s situation to the wider regional conflict. Iran had indicated that there would be no ceasefire involving the US, Israel and Iran unless it also included a ceasefire in Lebanon.
Some groups, including Hezbollah and its supporters, had expressed support for linking the situations, citing concerns that the Lebanese government has limited leverage in negotiations with Israel. Lebanon is not formally a party to the conflict, and its army is considered weak.
However, others, including Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, have opposed this approach. They view Iran’s stance as an attempt to influence Lebanon’s internal affairs and see it as undermining the country’s sovereignty.
Officials backing the government’s position say the move is aimed at reaffirming Lebanon’s sovereignty and ensuring that decisions about peace and ceasefire within the country are not dictated externally.
They also see it as a safeguard, so that any breakdown in talks between the US, Israel and Iran does not automatically lead to renewed conflict in Lebanon.
