Chandrashekhar terms attack on him 'conspiracy to finish opposition' in UP, demands Yogi's resignation

Dalit leader and Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad. Credit: PTI Photo

Bhim Army founder and firebrand Dalit leader Chandrashekhar alias 'Ravan', who had been fired at and got injured on Wednesday at Deoband in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur district, about 500 kilometres from here, alleged on Thursday that the attack on him was the handiwork of ''government supported criminals'' and termed it as a ''conspiracy to finish the opposition'' in the state.

The Dalit leader also said that the incident was reflective of the worsening law and order situation in UP and demanded resignation of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath even as the police had detained some people in connection with the attack which took place when Chandrashekhar was returning home after attending a religious function at a party worker's house.

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Chandrashekhar was recuperating in the hospital after the attack and had a steady stream of visitors, including leading wrestlers Bajarang Punia and Sakshi Malik besides leaders of different political parties.

''Such incidents can very well happen with any other political leader and his supporters,'' he said and attributed the attack on him to what he alleged the state's ''protection to the criminals on the basis of their caste and religion'', apparently referring to the allegations by the Opposition parties that the BJP government was targeting alleged criminals hailing from a particular community and caste.

Taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Bhim Army founder said that the government was 'misusing' Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Income Tax department to target the opposition leaders. ''Earlier it was ED and I-T but now the government supported criminals have started firing at the opposition leaders to finish them,'' he added.

The police said that they had recovered the vehicle used in the attack and also detained a few people in this connection.

According to the police, two bullets were fired at the Azad Samaj Party (ASP) president, who was sitting in his SUV, of which one grazed his waist while the other missed him and hit the back door.

Chandrashekhar's outfit had a considerable following among the Dalit community in several western UP districts including Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat, Shamli and Meerut.