Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on Saturday slammed the Opposition Samajwadi Party, accusing it of being the culprit behind the violence in Sambhal and terming the visit of the SP delegation to the violence-hit district a “drama”.

Speaking to a news agency, Maurya said, “The culprit of the incident that happened in Sambhal is the Samajwadi Party. Samajwadi Party has suffered a huge defeat in the by-elections. Sending a delegation is a drama, it is the politics of the vote bank. Samajwadi Party is getting wiped out, their vote bank has slipped. “

He further added, “I would like to tell Akhilesh Yadav to take care of your party and not try to spoil the atmosphere of Sambhal or Uttar Pradesh.”

His remarks came shortly after the Uttar Pradesh Police stopped a delegation of the Samajwadi Party from visiting Sambhal where five people were killed during a violence that erupted over a survey of a mosque.

The delegation of the Samajwadi Party, led by Leader of Opposition Mata Prasad Pandey, was scheduled to visit Sambhal today to assess the situation and meet the families of five people who were killed during the violence.

The administration’s action sparked sharp criticism from the SP, which accused the Yogi Adityanath government of stifling opposition voices and undermining democracy.

“The BJP government is murdering the Constitution and democracy! At the behest of the ruling power, the police prevented Leader of Opposition Shri Mata Prasad Pandey Ji from going to Sambhal. Highly condemnable!” the SP said.

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Earlier, the Samajwadi Party claimed that the police has placed its state unit president, Shyam Lal Pal, under house arrest.

“Yogi government is scared of the SP delegation. At the behest of the ruling power, the police stopped Honorable State President Shri Shyam Lal Pal Ji from going to Sambhal and placed him under house arrest. The BJP government is shredding the Constitution and democracy to pieces,” the party said, terming the police action “highly condemnable.”

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