Recently, during the auspicious festival of Ganesh Chaturthi, the Samajwadi Party MP from Sant Kabir Nagar blocked the road with his vehicle and hurt the sentiments of the Nishad community. In an agitated manner, he said, “Why are you getting involved in matters of religion and rituals?” This has angered the Nishad community, and the Nishad community of Uttar Pradesh will avenge this by defeating the Samajwadi Party in the next election. Similarly, in Raebareli, a Samajwadi Party leader clashed with police officers and used expressions such as “stay within your limits” and “wear bangles.” The police acted with restraint; otherwise, these SP workers were ready to resort to physical assault. After this, the same people began playing the “victim card” and staged a protest against the police.
In fact, as elections draw near, the hooliganism of Samajwadi leaders suddenly increases. I would like to remind the people of the state that in a similar manner, when the 2012 election was approaching, on July 6, 2011, under Mainather Police Station in Moradabad, a Muslim woman lodged a report against a Muslim man for attempting to rape her. The Station House Officer of Mainather immediately conducted a raid at the accused’s residence. Following this, according to a pre-planned strategy, people from the Muslim community who supported the Samajwadi Party falsely alleged desecration of the Quran and attacked police personnel. The disorder reached such an extent that the police outpost, police/PAC vehicles were set on fire, and police rifles were also looted.
As soon as then DIG Ashok Kumar Singh received information about the incident, he reached the spot along with the District Magistrate. However, a large number of Muslims supporting the Samajwadi Party attacked the DIG and DM as well. Heavy stone-pelting took place, and firing was also carried out. The District Magistrate fled the scene and took the police escort along with him. DIG Ashok Kumar Singh and his PRO, Sub-Inspector Ravi Kumar, were left alone. To save themselves, they entered a room at a nearby petrol pump. The crowd did not stop pursuing them there either, and both were severely beaten. Eventually, when both lost consciousness, the crowd presumed them dead and left.
After some time, Inspector KSP Kumar arrived there with a few personnel and shifted the injured officers to a hospital. The DIG underwent treatment for several years and had to go through multiple surgeries. For years, he could not fully recover. In this matter, six cases were registered by police and PAC officers. However, as soon as Akhilesh Yadav became Chief Minister in 2012, he got final reports filed in five cases through his preferred police officers. A chargesheet was filed in the case registered for serious offences such as an attempt on the lives of then DIG (now DGP) Ashok Kumar Singh and PRO Ravi Kumar, snatching of pistol and cartridges, creating terror, arson, and obstructing government work. However, Akhilesh Yadav withdrew that serious case as well. In his view, the lives of a senior IPS officer and a Sub-Inspector had no value. Evidently, this aggressive incident had been planned at the highest level of the party.
The Moradabad Sessions Court stayed the Samajwadi Party government’s decision to withdraw the case, and after the BJP government came to power in the state, the trial commenced in court. In 2025, 16 rioters were sentenced to life imprisonment by the Sessions Court. Had the Samajwadi government returned to power in 2017, then DIG Ashok Kumar Singh and Sub-Inspector Ravi Kumar would never have received justice. This is further evident from the fact that police personnel who had abandoned the DIG and fled during the violence and arson were dismissed after departmental action, but Akhilesh Ji, upon coming to power, reinstated them and rewarded them with postings in preferred districts such as Ghaziabad, Noida and Etawah. The IAS officer who fled along with the police escort, leaving the DIG behind, was later appointed District Magistrate of Lucknow by Akhilesh Yadav.
I would like to tell the people of the state that these Samajwadi Party goons will orchestrate similar serious criminal incidents in the coming days. They will engineer communal and caste riots, divide society, polarise voters in favour of their party, and falsely blame the BJP. If they come to power even by mistake, jungle raj will return to the state. Land grabbing, extortion, illegal collections from traders, open cow slaughter, loot and daily rioting will begin again. There will be an extreme level of Muslim appeasement, the consequences of which will be borne by the Hindu majority. Development will come to a halt, and criminals and hooligans will become public representatives and create chaos. Who can forget the parallel rule of notorious criminals such as Atiq Ahmed, Mukhtar Ansari and Vijay Mishra? The time calls for extreme vigilance and caution.
(Views are personal)
Brij Lal, is former Director General of Police and Rajya Sabha MP