SP chief Akhilesh Yadav crouched on the road near his residence in Lucknow today in protest.
Highlight
- Akhilesh Yadav was detained by the police in Lucknow
- Officials sealed off the road leading to his home before his “Kisan Yatra”
- Akhilesh Yadav broke through police barricades placed near his residence
Lucknow:
Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav was detained by police today after leading a brief sit-in in Lucknow, including as the administration sealed off the road leading to his residence just before his scheduled “Kisan Yatra” in the district. by Kannauj.
Shortly after noon, Mr. Yadav, wearing his party’s characteristic red cap, and together with a group of supporters, broke through the police barricades near his residence in Lucknow’s Vikramaditya Marg. Following police resistance, he and his followers squatted in the middle of the road while SP workers chanted against the government.
Soon after, the police arrested him, put him on a bus and took him away from the place in the heart of Lucknow.
Previously, the authorities had reported that Kisan Yatra had been denied permission and detained several SP leaders, in addition to sealing Vikramaditya Marg. The repression had been justified by citing the COVID-19 protocol in force throughout the state.
“They informed us that people will gather in one place and launch a procession from there, and I understand that any crowd that remains static for half an hour or an hour does not help anyone, not even the president of the SP. He requested that the program, “Kannauj District Magistrate Rakesh Mishra told NDTV.
Speaking to NDTV later, Yadav said that the coronavirus was simply an excuse to crush the opposition. “There is no COVID-19 for the BJP. If the opposition wants to do programs, there is COVID,” he said.
The 13 km Kisan Yatra from Thathia to Tirwa in Kannauj was to launch the SP Farmers’ Marches in all districts of Uttar Pradesh.
Earlier, in an apparent response, Mr. Yadav tweeted a couplet in Urdu, roughly translated as: “Wherever you look, the people are against you. Oh tyrant, who will you stop?”
He spoke to NDTV about the alleged farmers’ plight and the BJP’s failed promises. “The BJP promised to double the income of farmers, but where is the law? In UP, no one is managing to sell rice for more than Rs 1,000 a quintal,” Yadav said.
Thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab and Haryana, have been protesting in and around Delhi demanding the repeal of three agricultural laws introduced by the central government in September. Several political parties, including Congress, the BSP and now the SP, have voiced their support for the protesters and in recent weeks sought the repeal of the new laws.
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