Akhilesh Yadav slams BJP after denied permission for tribute at Jayaprakash Narayan Centre in Lucknow

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], October 11 (ANI): Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav reached the Jayaprakash Narayan International Centre (JPNIC) on Thursday evening after the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) refused to grant him permission to visit the site on Friday for the freedom fighter's birth anniversary, citing security concerns.
In a letter dated Thursday, October 10, the LDA mentioned that JPNIC is a construction site with haphazardly spread materials and potential insect infestations due to rain. "JPNIC is a construction site where construction material is spread haphazardly, and there is a possibility of many insects due to rain," the LDA said.

The letter also noted that Yadav has Z-plus category security, making it unsafe for him to garland the statue and visit the site. "SP chief Akhilesh Yadav has Z plus category security, due to which it is not safe and appropriate for him to garland the statue and visit JPNIC due to security reasons," it added.
Upon arriving at JPNIC, Akhilesh Yadav criticized the Uttar Pradesh government for blocking the entrance gate with tin sheets. He alleged that a wall was erected to stop him and others from paying tribute to Jayaprakash Narayan on his birth anniversary on Friday.
He further accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of harbouring ill will toward every freedom fighter.
"This is the ostentatious Amritkal of freedom under BJP rule. A wall was raised so that people could not pay tribute. The path that the BJP has closed is a symbol of their closed thinking," the SP chief wrote in a post on X in Hindi.

ये है भाजपा राज में आज़ादी का दिखावटी अमृतकाल
श्रद्धांजलि न दे पाए जनता इसलिए उठा दी गयी दीवार

भाजपा ने जो रास्ता बंद किया है, वो उनकी बंद सोच का प्रतीक है।

भाजपा जय प्रकाश नारायण जी जैसे हर उस स्वतंत्रता सेनानी के लिए अपने मन में दुर्भावना और दुराव रखती है, जिसने भी देश की… pic.twitter.com/kYaHiX1B1n

— Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) October 10, 2024

He continued, "The BJP holds ill-will and animosity towards every freedom fighter like Jayaprakash Narayan ji who took part in the freedom struggle of the country. It is the guilt within the BJP colleagues, who did not take part in the freedom struggle of the country that does not allow them to pay tribute to the revolutionaries even on their birth anniversaries. Condemnable!"
Earlier in the day, the Samajwadi Party shared a video on X showing workers installing tin sheets before the entrance gate of JPNIC.

लोकतंत्र पर निरंतर कर रही प्रहार, निकम्मी भाजपा सरकार !

यूपी सरकार द्वारा लोकनायक जय प्रकाश नारायण जी की जयंती पर उनके नाम पर बने JPNIC पर दुबारा ताला लगाने का प्रयास, अत्यंत निंदनीय।

जय प्रकाश नारायण जी की प्रतिमा पर माल्यार्पण न करने देना भाजपा की गंदी राजनीति को दर्शाता है।… pic.twitter.com/jr1Ta0tRMv

— Samajwadi Party (@samajwadiparty) October 10, 2024

The party criticized the BJP government, saying, "The useless BJP government is continuously attacking democracy! The UP government's attempt to re-lock JPNIC, named after Loknayak Jai Prakash Narayan, on his birth anniversary is highly condemnable.Not allowing garlanding of the statue of Jayaprakash Narayan Ji shows the dirty politics of BJP.This anti-people government has insulted great men by ruining development work like JPNIC built in Lucknow.Socialists will not bow down to these dictators!"
Narayan formed the first non-Congress government in the country by uniting the entire Opposition against the Congress party during the Emergency. He is remembered for leading a rainbow coalition of Opposition parties in the mid-1970s against then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, calling for 'Sampoorna Kranti' (total revolution). (ANI)