The BJP on Sunday cancelled a plan here to felicitate 63 party workers arrested in July on charges of clashing with the district administration of Moradabad, which had led to injuries to the district magistrate.
The BJP?s Amroha district unit admitted the event was cancelled an hour before it was to begin, following a call to do so by Uttar Pradesh BJP president Lakshmikant Bajpai.
While he was earlier expected to attend the event, Bajpai insisted the BJP was ?never involved in it to begin with?. ?This was a privately organised event, and the party had no role to play. However, when we found out that the party at the district level may be getting involved, we asked them to refrain from doing so,? he said.
Senior party leaders of the area added that the party didn?t want ?negative publicity?, particularly in light of the recent bypoll setbacks that indicated a rejection of the BJP?s efforts to whip up passions over ?love jehad?.
The Amroha BJP had announced a plan to felicitate the party workers arrested over the Moradabad clashes, who were released on bail in September. They had been held after a protest on July 4 led by them over the removal of a loudspeaker from a temple in Kanth had turned violent.
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