Delhi Social Welfare Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Rajendra Pal Gautam on Wednesday met the chief of the Ambedkarite group Bhim Army, Chandrashekhar Azad, in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
A statement issued by the Minister’s office here said Mr. Gautam met Mr. Azad to enquire about his health after his release from jail last week, as well as to seek his support for the “fight for justice” and “protection of the Constitution” in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
The statement noted that AAP convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had wanted to meet Mr. Azad when he was in jail in Saharanpur, but the district administration had not allowed it.
‘Murdering democracy’
Mr. Gautam added that Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s government was “murdering democracy” in the State. He said people from similar ideologies should get together to remove Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP government in 2019.
Mr. Azad had spent about a year behind bars in connection with a case of caste violence before being released last week.