BJP organises 'dangal', SP instigates 'dange': Anurag Thakur's swipe at Akhilesh Yadav
Anurag Thakur's attack came after Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath took a dig at opposition parties, urging people to not fall for their promises as they keep changing their statements.
Union minister for youth affairs and sports Anurag Thakur on Saturday took a swipe at Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav as the war of words between opposing parties has heated up ahead of the upcoming assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.
Anurag Thakur, who is also the Bharatiya Janata Party's Uttar Pradesh election co-incharge, claimed that unlike the BJP, which organises dangal (wrestling competitions) in the country, Akhilesh Yadav's party instigates dange or riots.
“...Akhilesh Yadav says that the BJP organised sports events for MPs here. Akhilesh bhai, tum dange karwate ho, hum dangal karwate hain,” news agency ANI quoted Thakur as saying in Baghpat.
Anurag Thakur's attack came after Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath took a dig at opposition parties, urging people to not fall for their promises as they keep changing their statements.
The chief minister also raked up Akhilesh Yadav’s ‘Jinnah’ comment to say that those who believe in the founder of Pakistan engaged in attacking faith and “instigated riots” in their tenure.
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"Rioters, who are followers of Jinnah, how can they understand the sweetness of sugarcane,” news agency PTI quoted him as saying.
Adityanath then went on to accuse Akhilesh Yadav, the former UP CM, of withdrawing cases against “terrorists” playing vote bank politics.
“Remember, the cases on terrorists who attacked the birthplace of Maryada Purushottam Shri Ram were shamelessly withdrawn by the previous government. Thanks to the Allahabad high court who did not allow this intention of the previous government to succeed,” he said.
In 2013, the then SP-ruled UP government issued an order for withdrawal of cases against the Ayodhya serial blast accused as it believed them to be “innocent Muslims” implicated in false cases. The order was stayed by the Allahabad high court.
Elections to 403 assembly constituencies in Uttar Pradesh are due early next year. In the 2017 assembly elections, the BJP received a landslide victory by securing 312 assembly seats and registered a 39.67 per cent vote share.