Mumbai: Welcoming the arrest of expelled Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Dayashankar Singh, the Samajwadi Party on Saturday said a line should be drawn so that the politicos do not misuse the right to speech and expression.
“I welcome the arrest. But in this nation, inflammatory statements are being made continuously against the Muslims. People like Sadhvi Prachi and Sakshi Maharaj keep talking against the Muslims. A line should be drawn so that they do not misuse the right to speech and expression. A law should be made,” Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi told ANI.
Singh was yesterday sent to a 14-day judicial custody after his arrest from Bihar’s Buxar district.
A case was lodged against Dayashankar on July 20 for making derogatory remarks against Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati.
Singh’s comment caused a furore in Parliament, forcing the BJP to expel him for six years.
The state police was searching Dayashankar with a non-bailable warrant issued by a Lucknow SC/ST court.
Earlier, the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court had rejected his plea for a stay on his arrest.
Singh had moved the high court seeking a stay on his possible arrest and challenging the FIR lodged against him by BSP leaders.
Dayashankar was wanted in connection with an FIR lodged with the Hazratganj Police on July 20 under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act for passing “derogatory” remarks against Mayawati.
On Thursday, Mayawati had hit out at the Uttar Pradesh government for not arresting Singh, alleging that he was roaming scot-free in the BJP-ruled Jharkhand and giving interviews to the media.
State BJP president Keshav Prasad Maurya met expelled party leader Dayashankar Singh’s wife Swati Singh on Thursday, who has been admitted to a private hospital for the last three days.
Demanding the arrest of BSP leaders for raising abusive slogans against Dayashankar’s family members, the women wing of the BJP on Thursday took out a procession in Lucknow. (ANI)