Akhilesh should take bold steps: Abu Asim Azmi

Q&A: Samajwadi Party Maharashtra unit chief

Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh is passing from one crisis after another. The recent being communal riots in Muzaffarnagar.

Party's national executive member and Maharashtra unit chief Abu Asim Azmi in an interview with Sanjay Jog, insists that Akhilesk Yadav needs to pull up socks to protect minorities and also maintain social harmony.

Has Akhilesh Yadav government failed to handle the Muzaffarnagar riots?

Let me first clarify that the lack of proper communication between police department and the government aggravated the situation. Some key inputs were not communicated to chief minister Akhilesh Yadav.

Ironically, police department has become communal. Had the intelligence inputs passed on time, the situation could have been handled in a much better way. All our good deeds have been washed away by these riots.

On the other hand, BSP, BJP and Congress are bent on destabilizing the Akhilesh Yadav led government in Uttar Pradesh. These parties in the run up to the Lok Sabha elections are making all efforts to create a communal divide. More importantly, these parties want that the muslim and minorities in particular are deserted from the Samajwadi Party.

However, Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, who is popularly known as Netaji, and Akhilesh will foil all attempts made by opposition parties as they are determined to maintain harmony between Hindu and Muslim communities.

But you insisted that Mulayamsingh Yadav could have use iron hand to firmly deal with the situation. What further you have to say?

Mulayam Singh Yadav did all the possible things to maintain the secular credentials of his government in 1990s. He did not deter to order firing to avoid deterioration of law and order. Netaji continues to enjoy respect and affection in minorities and at the same time he is quite popular among Hindu community.

I strongly feel that Akhilesh should take bold steps to avoid any more communal riots. Similarly, Akhilesh should also focus on the protection of minorities, their religious places and infuse confidence instead of concentrating on the implementation of party's manifesto with regard to the distribution of laptop and carrying out various development schemes.

What the Samajwadi Party should do to win the confidence of minorities?

The government will pay a compensation of Rs 20 lakh to kin and kith of those killed in the riot and also reconstruct the houses. Mulayam Singh Yadav has already instructed the government to do so. The government will do it.

However, at the national executive meeting it was unanimously decided that the government and party organization should work hand in hand to further reach out to the minorities and strongly stand behind them. Party executive also decided to ask block level workers to step up their efforts to maintain social and communal harmony.