Mainpuri (UP): A case was registered against the workers of Samajawadi Party (SP) for vandalizing the statue of Maharana Pratap and indulging in hooliganism in Mainpuri district here in Uttar Pradesh after which people staged a protest at Maharana Pratap Chowk on Sunday demanding immediate arrest of the culprits, police sources said here.
It may be noted that on Saturday SP president Akhilesh Yadav held a roadshow in Mainpuri in support of his wife and party candidate Dimple Yadav during which some workers allegedly raised indecent slogans at Maharana Pratap Chowk.
Police sources said that after the road show a group of SP workers climbed on the statue of Maharana Pratap and vandalized it. "It has been alleged that the miscreants bent the spear in Maharana Pratap's statue and put a SP flag in his hand. They also made indecent remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath," they said.
Meanwhile, CM Yogi has condemned the incident in harshest terms. "SP and Congress cannot be expected to respect national heroes. Both the parties can only glorify terrorists and mafia," he said.
After this incident a large number of people staged a protest at Maharana Pratap Chowk on Sunday, raising slogans and demanding immediate arrest of all those SP workers involved in the incident, including the Lok Sabha in-charge and Assembly in-charge. Considering the seriousness of the matter, the police have registered a case against 90 to 100 SP workers under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
CM Yogi has expressed grief over this incident and given assurance to the people that the culprits will not be spared under any circumstances. He said that on the one hand the SP and Congress patronise, encourage and glorify the mafia, rioters and terrorists and on the other, insult national heroes.
He said that after coming to power in 2012 SP made a malicious attempt to withdraw the cases of terrorists who attacked Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya, Sankatmochan Temple in Kashi, Lucknow courts as well as the CRPF camp in Rampur.
Yogi said, "Recently, when a notorious mafia don died, the SP president himself visited his house to offer his condolences. How did he behave with Ram devotees during the Ramjanmabhoomi movement in Ayodhya? What was the conduct of SP on the death of Kalyan Singh. Their disrespectful and contemptuous behavior towards the statue of national hero Maharana Pratap on Saturday is highly condemnable. I condemn this act."
He said, "This conduct is not exclusive to SP, similar incidents took place with Rahul Gandhi in Maharashtra. When a supporter offered him a statue of Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj, he declined it. It's evident they won't honour national heroes but will instead exalt terrorists, Pakistan, and criminal elements, posing a threat to the safety of women and businessmen. The nation is observing, and they will receive a fitting response in the upcoming elections."
The CM emphasised that when leaders embrace shamelessness and pursue self-serving politics, their interests often prioritise their families, resulting in such displays. "Whether it's the incidents in Mainpuri or Maharashtra, Congress, SP and National Conference exhibit similar tendencies. One cannot expect better things from them," he said.
