Lucknow: Samajwadi Party (SP) supremo Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday accused the BJP-led of “orchestrating” the violence in the state’s Sambhal during a mosque survey. The former chief minister’s statement came after police were forced to use tear gas and minor force in Sambhal to control the violence that took place following the survey.
Speaking to news agency PTI, Yadav said, “What happened in Sambhal was orchestrated by the BJP, the government and the administration to divert attention from electoral malpractices. He further claimed that the intention was to create chaos so that no debates were held on election issues.
Tensions in UP’s Sambhal since Tuesday
The district has witnessed tensions since last week following the survey of Jama Masjid following an order of a local court. The order was issued after a plea was filed in the court claiming that a temple stood at the site.
As the tensions increased on Sunday, the police were forced to use tear gas to stop stone pelting by some of the locals during the second survey of the Mughal-era mosque. While the probe was ordered into the case, the police detained 10 people in the incident. As per the police, some people had even tried to set some two-wheelers on fire.
‘Those found guilty won’t be spared’
The officials added that the second survey started at around 7 AM after which the crowd gathered there. “Some miscreants in the crowd pelted stones at the police team. The police used minor force and tear gas to bring the situation under control,” the agency quoted Superintendent of Police Krishna Kumar Vishnoi as saying He added that actions will be taken against those found engaged in stone pelting and those encouraging the same.