Mulayam’s Sant Sabha in UP eyes BJP sadhu votes

Then the BJP MLC from Lucknow, Banwari Lal Kanchhal along with many top business community leaders and workers had joined the SP just before the Assembly polls.

At that time, the SP supremo Mulayam Singh was the first to have vehemently opposed the Babri Masjid demolition by the VHP activists — mainly saints. After that he had became the Muslim community’s messiah.

However, the SP is out to cash in on the large-scale resentment prevalent among the saints against the leadership over the Ram Temple construction, with a section of saints believing the VHP leadership is not interested in it. They believe the VHP is only interested in fooling people.

Keeping that in mind, the party appointed Sant Baba Bhagwan Das of Hanuman Garhi of Ayodhya as Sabha president, who in the presence of state SP president Ram Sharan Das and Mulayam Singh’s brother Shivpal Singh Yadav, spewed venom against VHP.

He alleged, ‘‘The VHP was out to disintegrate the country. By triggering a controversy over the Ram Temple, they have made the lives of not only sadhus but people of the cities of Ayodhya and Faizabad hell.’’

He also alleged RSS, VHP and Bajrang Dal activists were committing atrocities on saints.

Baba Bhagwan Das said, ‘‘Now, the BJP, in collaboration with the BSP, is going to install the statue of Periyar who had burnt copies of the Ramayana. the day had come to expose these BJP men pretending to be followers of Ram.’’