The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday came down heavily on the Mayawati-led Uttar Pradesh government for denying its prime ministerial candidate L K Advani permission to hold a rally in Azamgarh on March 28.
“The ground for the refusal of permission (for holding rally) was security,” said BJP spokesperson Balbir Punj.
The BJP had chosen three venues, including a stadium and a college ground, for the rally.
Earlier, the Indian Premier League (IPL) was called off due to security reasons and will rallies of leaders like L K Advani be cancelled now, Punj asked.
Azamgarh has been in the news after the Batla House shootout in Delhi, in which two suspected members of the Indian Mujahideen and one police officer were killed, in September last year. The two Indian Mujahideen members were from Azamgarh, prompting intensive raids in the small eastern Uttar Pradesh town.