UP violence

Deputy chief minister, Keshav Prasad Maurya, said that disciplinary action could be taken against the 59-year-old Singh, a former army man turned bureaucrat. “He appeared to be making a statement like a party spokesman despite the fact is that government servants are bound by rules,” Maurya said on Tuesday.

Singh, who was trolled on social media, later put up an explanation that his Facebook post was not related to Kasganj and that he was referring to the law and order problem he had encountered during last year’s Kanwar Yatra in Bareilly. “I had hoped there would be an academic discussion [on his post] but unfortunately this has taken a different turn. It appears the post (deleted now) has been found objectionable by many. That’s sad for we discuss things to improve... It’s true that Pakistan is an enemy country but Muslims are our own,” his second post said.

Meanwhile, VHP vice president (Braj prant) Sunil Parashar said the yatra will be taken out in the Braj region, which is spread over 20 districts in the Agra, Aligarh and Bareilly divisions.

Parashar said taking out a tiranga yatra was not a crime. “There is no need to seek permission as such patriotic yatras need no sanction from the police or administration,” he said.

Agra’s superintendent of police Kunwar Anupam Singh, however, maintained that the police had no information about any yatra and said that seeking permission was mandatory.

Director-general of police (DGP) Om Prakash Singh had on Monday directed superintendents of police (SPs) of all 75 districts of the state to remain alert and to restrict the movement of people whose visit might add to communal tension in the region.