Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Minister, Om Prakash Rajbhar, on Monday launched a sharp attack on Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav over his remarks on demolition action against illegal construction at Mohammad Ali Jauhar University in Rampur, alleging that the latter himself wanted jailed SP leader Azam Khan to be “ruined”.
Speaking to IANS on Akhilesh Yadav’s criticism of the “bulldozer action” against the university, Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) chief Rajbhar questioned why the previous Samajwadi Party government had failed to regularise the land when it was in power.
“Akhilesh Yadav himself wants Azam Khan ruined. When his own government was in power, and public funds were utilised, why wasn’t the government land transferred to the university’s name?” Rajbhar said.
Earlier, in a post on X, Akhilesh Yadav had urged the public to support efforts to save the university, calling it a “temple of education”. He claimed that the BJP-led UP government was attempting to make the institution a victim of its “narrow politics” and was trying to “bulldoze the dreams” of thousands of students and their families.
This came as a political controversy erupted after the Rampur Development Authority (RDA) ordered the demolition of 38 out of 40 buildings at Mohammad Ali Jauhar University, saying that the structures were constructed without obtaining approval from the competent authority.
The Uttar Pradesh minister also criticised Akhilesh Yadav’s repeated references to socialism, asserting that the SP chief should first distance himself from dynastic politics before claiming to follow socialist ideals.
“If he talks about socialism, he must first break free from dynastic politics. He should start by not giving election tickets to members of his own family. Only then can he truly speak of socialism. Ram Manohar Lohia had said that before claiming to follow his ideals, a person should remove caste-denoting words from their name. Only then can someone truly be called a socialist,” Rajbhar said.
Reacting to Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind president Maulana Arshad Madani’s criticism of the action against Jauhar University, Rajbhar questioned why the previous Samajwadi Party government had not transferred the government land to the educational institution despite remaining in office for five years.
“I want to ask Maulana Madani: When Akhilesh Yadav’s government was in power for five years, why wasn’t the government land transferred to the educational institution?” he asked.
While the Uttar Pradesh government defended the action as being in accordance with the law, the SP accused the BJP government of acting with political vendetta.
The RDA has directed the university to remove the unauthorised structures within 15 days, warning that the administration will initiate demolition proceedings if the institution does not comply with the order.
(IANS)
