UP Govt should have acted earlier against encroachers: Nitish

Expressing concern over Mathura violence that claimed 27 lives, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today said action should have been taken earlier against encroachers and questioned why they were allowed to continue their activities for such a long time.
"It is a matter of grave concern and surprise. How could encroachers have been allowed to squat there for quite long time? Even their (encroachers) demands were very surprising," Kumar told reporters here on the Mathura incident.
"Actions against the encroachers should have been taken much earlier. They (encroachers) should not have been allowed to do what they were doing. No one can even think of such incident," Kumar said.

At least 27 people, including two police officers, died in Thursday's clashes between police and encroachers at Jawahar Bagh in Mathura.
60-year-old Ram Vriksh Yadav, who was among the dead, was the leader of Azad Bharat Vidhik Vaicharik Kranti Satyagrahi, an outfit claiming to owe allegiance to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose whose members had encroached on Jawahar Bagh area for two years and clashed with police on Thursday when they tried to evict them.
Kumar, who is the national president of JD(U), was talking to reporters at the launch of party's nationwide membership campaign at party headquarters here today.

"The party has launched membership campaign from today and party leaders and workers are carrying out the membership campaign today in their respective areas.... Sharad Yadav is in Madhepura for the launch of the campaign," Kumar said.

Talking to reporters here, JD(U) state president Bashishtha Narayan Singh said that the party has set target of making 50 lakh party members from Bihar alone during the campaign. He, however, did not specify the target fixed at the national level.
Singh said that the party has decided that a worker or member would make 25 persons as party members and not more than this and the person who would make 25 members would become an active member.
There was a need to strengthen people having socialist ideology, Singh said, adding that the party wanted an alliance on ideological level.

Earlier, Nitish Kumar's primary membership was renewed and he in turn made 25 people as party's primary member. Later, Kumar was given the certificate of active member.