Mulayam and son placed under house arrest, released

Even as the Samajwadi Party launched statewide three-day agitation against BSP government, the Lucknow police placed national president Mulayam Singh and his son Akhilesh Yadav, both Lok Sabha members, under house arrest on Monday morning.

They were not allowed to proceed to the airport to attend Lok Sabha proceedings. However, after strong protests Mulayam was allowed to go to the airport.

Since Sunday night the police had completely barricaded the area around Yadav’s residence on Vikramadidtya Marg.

The SP workers who were on the streets since early today morning locked one of the gates of chief minister’s office, known as Annexe.

Mulayam Singh Yadav said he was to catch a flight for Delhi but the police did not allow him to move out of his residence.

Large police force have been deployed around Hazratganj and Qaisarbagh areas to scuttle the movement of SP workers. The two areas have declared highly sensitive.

Yadav has shot off a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar protesting against his house arrest. Later leaving the house, Yadav said he would raise in the issue in Lok Sabha.

However, Lucknow district magistrate Anil Kumar Sagar said that Yadav had not been placed under house arrest and there was no check on his movement to the airport. The DM also denied that the SP workers had succeeded in putting up locks on the gate of the CMO.

There were reports of road blockade and trains disruption from various parts of the state. In order to scuttle the agitation the police cracked down on SP leaders all over the state late last night.

Yadav said nearly 15000 workers had been arrested in the state.