Denied entry, Akhilesh scales locked gate to pay tribute to JP on birth anniversary

The SP chief, who was accompanied by party worker, alleged that a wall of iron sheet was installed there just to stop him from garlanding the statue of the socialist leader

Denied entry by police, Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav scaled around 8 feet high locked gate of Jayaprakash Narayan International Centre (JPNIC) here to garland a statue of the socialist leader on his birth anniversary on Wednesday.

Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav scaling the gate of Jayaprakash Narayan International Centre in Lucknow to garland a statue of the socialist leader on his birth anniversary on October 11. (HT photo)

He accused the state government of dictatorship and undemocratic behaviour. The SP chief, who was accompanied by party worker, also alleged that a wall of iron sheet was installed there just to stop him from garlanding the statue of Jayaprakash Narayan (1902-1979) popularly referred to as JP or Lok Nayak (people’s leader).

“However, those who have an iron will can’t be stopped from achieving their goals,” the former U.P. chief minister said. “Samajwadis will continue to struggle against the BJP government’s autocracy. What is the use of democracy when obstacles are created. The Bharatiya Janata Party cannot block the path of the Samajwadi Party in such ways,” Akhilesh said in a tweet following the incident.

On reaching the statue, the SP workers found that JP’s statue was wrapped in a tarpaulin sheet. They unwrapped it before the SP national president garlanded it. The road was completely jammed after a bus carrying Akhilesh Yadav and his party workers came in front of JPNIC around 11:50 am. The SP activists claimed to have demanded the authorities to allow the SP chief to enter JPNIC on his bus but to no avail.

The SP workers created a ruckus there. “The BJP is repeating the same mistake which the Congress made in pre-Emergency period to tame JP’s ideology. Today, the BJP doesn’t want to give any space to anyone,” said SP spokesperson Ashutosh Varma. Requesting anonymity, Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) officials said, “The work is going on inside the JPNIC and so it was closed. The authorities are mulling over lodging an FIR against forcible entry into the government building.”