LUCKNOW: Yogi Adityanath led Uttar Pradesh government initiates process to withdraw hate speech cases against controversial BJP leader Sadhvi Prachi, former Union Minister and BJP MP Sanjeev Balyan, BJP MLA Sangeet Som and three other Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmakers.
The move comes after the UP government initiated the similar process to withdraw 131 cases in connection to the 2013 communal riots held in Muzaffarnagar and Shamli.
The two cases that have been decided to be dropped are linked to the two mahapanchayats held in an inter-college Mandor region on August 31, 2013 and in September 2013 in the Muzaffarnagar where Sadhvi Prachi, BJP MPs Kunwar Bhartendra Singh, Sanjeev Balyan, BJP MLAs Umesh Malik, Sangeet Som and Suresh Rana allegedly incited violence through their speeches.
14 accused including Sadhvi Prachi, Singh, Balyan, Malik and Rana named in the first case, related to the mahapanchayat on August 31, 2013.
In the second case, 13 accused including Prachi, Singh, Rana and Som are charged related to mahapanchayat held on September 7, 2013.