Varanasi: Claiming that it was Samajwadi Party members who sparked clashes in Sambhal, deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak, here on Sunday, sought apology from its president Akhilesh Yadav for his remarks and said that he should take responsibility for what happened in Sambhal.
Talking to the media here, Pathak criticised Akhilesh for his statements made on the violent incident in Sambhal. He said Akhilesh's posts reveal the true face of SP. "Akhilesh should take responsibility for the Sambhal incident, as his party is issuing various statements to cover up actions of the criminals instead of taking action against them," he said, adding that BJP-led govt in the state was committed to ensuring justice in the Sambhal violence and that impartial investigation was underway because no one could be allowed to tamper with the law and order. Pathak, who also attended the grand congregation of 51 Shakti Peethas and 12 Jyotirlingas at Rudraksh Convention Centre in Varanasi, said the Sambhal incidents "exposed once again this party's character and face and how criminals were associated with it". He alleged that the perpetrators of violence in Sambhal were all SP workers and Akhilesh was issuing various statements to hide their misdeeds.
Earlier, Pathak reached the neighbouring Chandauli district to take stock of the under-construction trauma centre at Mahewa. He expressed dissatisfaction over use of poor-quality bricks in the construction and demonstrated the quality of the bricks by breaking them in front of the officials of the executing agency.
In Varanasi, Pathak took stock of progress in the construction of Kazzakpura flyover and directed the engineers of PWD and UP Bridge Corporation officials to complete the work on a war footing. This project of Rs 144 crore started in Sep 2019 with a deadline of Jun 2022 for completion but is yet incomplete. Pathak inspected widening and strengthening of the four-lane stretch of the Padav-Ramnagar (Tengra Mod), where 77% work is complete, but railway underpass work has not started yet. He asked officials concerned to coordinate with railway officials to commence work immediately. The project was initially scheduled for completion by Jan 2024.
District magistrate S Rajalingam and CDO Himanshu were also present during the inspection.