Akhilesh Yadav shielded terrorists when he was CM of UP: J P Nadda

BJP president JP Nadda accused Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Friday of shielding terrorists.

BJP president JP Nadda accused Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav on Friday of shielding terrorists.

Addressing an election meeting here, he said, "On November 23, 2007, there were bomb blasts in three court complexes in Uttar Pradesh. Fifteen people were killed and 50 injured. The Indian Mujahideen claimed responsibility for the blasts. It took the responsibility for the bomb blasts at the Dashaswamedh Ghat, in a Shramjeevi train, and at Sarojini Nagar, Govindpuri and Paharganj in Delhi. It also took the responsibility for the Sankatmochan Varanasi blasts and the Mumbai local train bomb blasts."

Nadda said the investigating agencies had nabbed one accused from Azamgarh and another from Jaunpur.

"They faced trial, but Akhilesh withdrew the cases against them when he was the chief minister (of Uttar Pradesh) in 2012. Later, the high court had asked whether it was the government's job to protect terrorists. This is the real face of the SP," he added.

"Akhilesh shielded terrorists. I allege that as the chief minister, he gave shelter to terrorists. The saviour became the attacker. He has misled the innocent people of Uttar Pradesh," the BJP chief claimed.

Referring to SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav's visit to Karhal to address a poll meeting on Wednesday, he said, "Akhilesh took his father to the constituency from where he is contesting the polls. This gives a message that he is not fighting the Uttar Pradesh polls, but only focussing on one constituency. Netaji's (Mulayam) visit means that the ground of the SP has slipped from under its feet."

Speaking on the Ram temple in Ayodhya, the BJP chief said, "The work on the temple is going on at a fast pace. Our centuries-old wish is going to be fulfilled. There was an ideology behind our hopes for a Ram mandir. There was a political party carrying that ideology, with which crores of people stood."

He told the gathering that when SP leaders come for campaigning, they should ask them on what grounds are they seeking votes. "It was you (SP) and your government that had fired bullets on the devotees of Lord Ram," he added.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader also accused the Congress of "delaying" the construction of the Ram temple.

"Those who did not know how to take charnamrit are delivering speeches after applying sandalwood paste on their foreheads," he said.

Slamming the Congress, Nadda said, "The Indian National Congress is no more Indian nor a national party. It has become a party of a brother-sister duo. The BJP is the only party that has an ideology."

Hitting out at the SP, he said, "From one family itself, someone is an MP, someone is an MLA, someone is a zila panchayat chairman or a member. The SP is a dynastic party and the BJP does development. This is the difference between the two parties."

The BJP president also offered prayers at Shri Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya.