By IANS,
Lucknow : Hundreds of activists of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) youth wing were assaulted with batons and later detained here Tuesday as they clashed with the police during demonstration over corruption and the law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh.
Accusing Chief Minister Mayawati of indulging in corrupt practices and not making sincere efforts to restore law and order in the state, activists of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) hit the streets and headed towards the Vidhan Sabha in Hazratganj.
When prevented from taking out the march near the Hussainganj crossing, BJYM activists turned violent and clashed with the police, who retorted with water canons and baton charge to disperse the protesters.
While the police claimed no one was injured in the incident, BJYM state president Harish Dwivedi said around 20-25 of the party activists were injured.
“We were targeted at the behest of the chief minister, who always looks for harsh measures to gag voices being raised against her autocratic style of functioning,” Dwivedi told reporters here.
“The state government is misusing public money to erect parks and memorials. The government machinery is also being misused on the directives of the chief minister, who claims to be the custodian of Dalits and downtrodden,” Dwivedi said.
“She (Mayawati) has not taken any significant step to restore law and order in the state. We would continue our fight against the state government, and such demonstrations would continue to take place in Lucknow and other districts of the state,” he added.