Talking to reporters here, Yadav said, “The atmosphere that has been created in Uttar Pradesh today is one where the (Mahindra) Thar and bulldozers have deliberately been turned into symbols of the BJP’s dominance and fear.” He alleged that the attack on Suman took place because the Rajya Sabha MP was on his way to Sunhera village in Bulandshahr district, where he was set to raise his voice against atrocities on Dalits, including the crushing of some villagers under the wheels of a Mahindra Thar vehicle, resulting in the death of a Dalit woman and serious injuries to others.
“The government is deliberately using the Thar and bulldozers to instill fear among people. This is not just an attack on Ramji Lal Suman, it is a direct challenge to the government’s so-called zero-tolerance policy on crime,” the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said.
Asserting that the SP stands by the Constitution and rule of law, Yadav alleged that with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) being in power in Uttar Pradesh, certain sections of the society have been given the complete freedom to commit atrocities because “their people” occupy positions of power at every level.
“The attack on Suman points towards full support from the government machinery. Today, they are intimidating opposition leaders, tomorrow, they will not even spare the common people,” he said.
Yadav alleged that this was not the first such attack and that it had the backing of the state’s top officials, including the director general of police (DGP).
Accusing the BJP government of selectively targeting PDA communities, Yadav said, “In Allahabad, a Dalit was burnt alive. In Varanasi, a youngster from the Patel community was shot dead. In Jaunpur, a young man was chased and killed. In Rampur, a Dalit deaf-and-mute girl was raped. In Azamgarh, a youngster was killed for raising the Jai Bhim slogan.” He claimed that a new and dangerous trend is emerging in the state but asserted that the SP would not be intimidated by it.
Referring to alleged discrimination in bureaucratic postings, Yadav said, “I have shared the data earlier. If you see the postings at places like Gorakhpur, Amethi and Kushinagar, you will understand. In Kushinagar, among the IPS and PPS officers, there is only one from the PDA communities.” Asked about threats to him on social media platforms, Yadav said, “The reality is that these people are openly mocking law and order. The threats are not just to me, those are a challenge to the chief minister, the DGP and the system. It is a challenge to those in uniform, who are trained to uphold the law.” “We are political people, we are not going to be afraid of these threats,” he added.
Karni Sena state president Gyanendra Singh Chauhan took responsibility of Sunday’s incident involving Suman.
“We accept full responsibility for all that took place. We had made a public declaration on social media that we will not allow the entry of Ramji Lal Suman in this district. We did throw tyres on his cavalcade. Some brickbats were also hurled,” Chauhan told a television news channel.
He also said, “Throwing tyres on a car is not an act of violence. We wanted Suman to get out of his car so that we could talk to him.” Police have booked a number of protesters and arrested five people in connection with the incident, officials said, adding that Suman was safely escorted out of the area. PTI ABN RC