Samajwadi Party, Congress Allege INDIA Bloc's Ambedkar Nagar Candidate Put Under House Arrest

LUCKNOW: The Congress and the Samajwadi Party Saturday alleged that SP's Ambedkar Nagar Lok Sabha constituency candidate Lalji Verma has been put under house arrest at the behest of the ruling BJP. Polling is underway in Ambedkar Nagar in the sixth phase of elections. The district administration could not be reached for a comment on the allegations of the two parties.

SP leader Arvind Kumar Singh wrote to the Chief Electoral Officer alleging the Ambedkar Nagar administration is influencing the elections by keeping the SP candidate under house arrest. The EC should take cognisance so that fair voting is ensured, he said. In a post on X, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said the police raided Verma's house. "But the police neither wanted to find anything nor found anything. This is an evil act to tarnish the honest image of Lalji Verma. Extremely condemnable! This is the frustration of the losing BJP," he said.

अंबेडकरनगर का पूरा प्रशासनिक अमला मुझे प्रताड़ित कर रहा है, जिसका ज़बाब अंबेडकर नगर की समस्त जनता अपने वोट से देगी।

मुझे चाहे जितना प्रताड़ित किया जाए लेकिन पिछड़ों,दलितों,अल्पसंख्यको की आवाज को दबने नहीं दूंगा।

मैं समाजवादी पार्टी के समस्त कार्यकर्ताओं,बूथ अध्यक्षों से अपील… pic.twitter.com/XnC3AtQrZA — Lalji Verma (@LaljiVermaSP) May 25, 2024

The Uttar Pradesh Congress said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP government are "so frightened by the fear of defeat that they have openly resorted to dictatorship". "Information is being received that INDIA alliance candidate from Ambedkar Nagar Lalji Verma has been placed under house arrest," the party said on X.

"By misusing the government machinery, the candidates of the INDIA alliance are not being allowed to come out of the house and the voters are being threatened. Sir, if you have woken up, please take action," the party said, drawing the attention of the Election Commission of India. In a separate post, the Samajwadi Party also appealed to the Election Commission to take cognisance of the matter.