SP stalls proceedings of UP house over poor law and order

Lucknow, July 16 (UNI) The proceeding of the Uttar Pradesh legislative assembly were adjourned for a hour today as the principal oposition Samajwadi Party disrupted its functioning over ''poor law and order situation'' in the state.

As soon as the house met for the day, slogan-shouting SP members raised a commotion, charging the Mayawati government of being ''insensitive'' towards the plight of the common man.

When the Speaker failed to convince SP MLAs to raise the issue during Zero Hour, he adjourned the house till 1220 hrs. In the process, the house could not take up the Question Hour.

Leader of the Opposition and SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav said the state government has failed to contain the deteriorating law and order situation. ''The insensitivity of the state government has forced the SP to take such a step,'' he said.

The SP members claimed that the ''mass rape'' in Shravasti and the bus robbery in Barabanki proved that minorities were increasingly coming under attack in UP.

The former CM said a probe team sent by the SP to Shravasti has found that women from the minority community were raped. ''Still the state government insists that there was no such incident,'' he added. He also charged the state government of harassing SP leaders in Kannauj district through police.

Demanding a judicial probe into the matter, BJP legislature party leader Om Prakash Singh said his party was worried about the fate of the Hindu girl who had eloped with a Muslim boy which led to the incident in Shravasti.

Unidentified armed miscreants had robbed several devotees, aboard two buses, of valuables in Safdarjung area of Barabanki district early yesterday. The buses were intercepted by the miscreants near Bilkiya Amausi on Deva-Fatehpur highway.

The devotees aboard the vehicle, en route from Lucknow to Kichocha via Deva Shareef, were robbed of jewellery, cash and mobile phones.

Enraged over the incident, a mob protested and blocked the traffic at Safdarjung crossing.

On July 10, a group of men led by minister Daddan Mishra's brother Ashok allegedly molested four women from the minority community in Dhannidih. The incident was a fallout of elopement of a girl, Vandana with Salim.

Houses of the minorities were allegedly looted and the mob of about 1,000 people led by the minister's brother even paraded some women in the nude.

Taking stock of the situation, the UP government on Friday had suspended Shravasti SP Luv Kumar and dismissed a station officer.

Circle Officer (CO) Maya Ram Verma was also placed under suspension.

Besides, the state government had directed Divisional Commissioner, Devipatan to probe the case.

The FIR of the case was registered on July 12 against 25 persons, of which 10 including the victim's father Krishnanand Dwivedi had already been arrested.

UNI