Uproar in UP Assembly | BJP govt trying to disturb communal peace: Opp on mausoleum vandalism

Speaking during the Zero Hour, on the second day of the monsoon session, SP MLA and Leader of Opposition Mata Prasad Pandey blamed the local BJP leaders for the situation in Fatehpur, alleging it was done in a planned manner.
“In Fatehpur, an announcement was made 7 days ago by a leader of your party (BJP) to take over a mausoleum. It was done in a planned manner, and it was claimed that this mausoleum belonged to Hindus. Later, a group of people was brought. Police had put up barricades, but an appropriate number of security personnel were not deployed. As a result, these people were able to make their way to the site,” Pandey said as he demanded action against the guilty.

Accusing the BJP government of trying to disturb communal harmony in the state, Pandey said: “The BJP government does not want to maintain peace. In my area, a small shrine was demolished after a leader of your party (BJP) put pressure. It has become a trend across the state to demolish madrasas and Muslim mausoleums to benefit one side.”

Responding to the charge, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Khanna said that “neither the government nor any machinery of the government was involved in the incident”.

“An FIR has been registered… The law will do its work. Whosoever will try to take the law into their hands will be punished,” Khanna added.

Not satisfied with the response, SP legislators moved into the Well of the House, raising slogans against the BJP government and demanding the arrest of those accused.

“Sitting here, you are claiming that there is no better law and order in the country other than Uttar Pradesh. The Fatehpur mausoleum is even mentioned in 1906 records and is protected by the ASI (Archaeological Survey of India). However, the BJP district unit president had announced earlier that the mausoleum would be demolished on August 11. It is the responsibility of the government to take action against such rioters and punish them,” SP legislator Kamal Akhtar said.

Congress Legislature Party leader Aradhana Mishra also alleged the same and demanded a response from the government. Speaker Satish Mahana, however, said the issue has been raised and the government “might not have a detailed reply” on the incident. “It is an issue of recent importance. How can the government not have details of the incident?” asked the Congress MLA.

As Opposition members continue to protest, Speaker Mahana adjourned the House for the day.

Meanwhile, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati called for strict action against those disturbing communal harmony on Tuesday.

“… the government should not allow any community to take any such step which may create communal tension and also spoil the mutual brotherhood and harmony,” Mayawati said in a post on X in Hindi.

“The government must take this matter seriously and take strict action if required,” the BSP chief said.

UP Congress chief Ajay Rai slammed the government, accusing it of negligence and police of collusion.

Rai recalled that Fatehpur, known as ‘Fatehpur Doab’, has a proud legacy of ‘Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb’ (Hindu-Muslim harmony) that endured even the unrest following the 1992 Babri Masjid demolition. He alleged that BJP leaders, “emboldened by power and under police protection”, had inflicted a deep wound on this tradition.

National Conference president Farooq Abdullah Tuesday condemned the vandalisation of a Sufi tomb in Uttar Pradesh, calling it a deliberate attempt to inflame communal passions and undermine the country’s secular foundations.— With PTI Inputs