Facing flak on law & order during Muzaffarnagar riots, Akhilesh Yadav govt bans VHP's Sankalp Yatra

LUCKNOW: Still reeling under the impact of Muzaffarnagar riots, the Akhilesh Yadav government has banned the proposed Sankalp Yatra by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad on October 18.

As the name suggests, the march was called to pledge for the construction of Lord Ram temple in Ayodhya.

A state government official confirmed the yatra was being banned in view of its agenda and in anticipation of law and order problems. VHP leader Ashok Singhal said that the SP government was working on an Islamic agenda and creating roadblocks in the yatra. He said the government had earlier also stopped the “Chaurasi Kosi Yatra” in Ayodhya. He alleged the SP was promoting Jehadis that led to the recent Muzaffaranagar riots.

The SP government has been cautious in dealing with VHP events lest it disturb further the already upset political equations in the state.

The caution with which the government is approaching the subject is apparent in the way in which Home Secretary Sarvesh Chandra Mishra was first transferred and then suspended for overlooking the language of an official letter.

The letter that was circulated among officers for discussing the VHP yatra on August 18, mentioned its subject as “reconstruction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya on the lines of Somnath Temple”. The words used attracted controversy as it gave the impression that the government officials were to discuss the reconstruction of the temple that is a contentious political and religious issue