BJP demands strong action by the Election Commission against SP

BJP on Wednesday demanded strong action by the Election Commission against Samajwadi Party accusing it of trying to divide security forces on communal lines during the elections.

In a controversial statement, UP minister Azam Khan has dragged the Kargil conflict into the ongoing Lok Sabha campaign, saying it was 'Muslim soldiers' who fought for India's victory in the 1999 Kargil war against Pakistan.

"This is election time and the EC has responsibility to conduct the polls impartially. Security forces have a crucial role to play in the elections. If any body tries to do communal politics over security forces, then it will have a serious repercussion on electioneering," BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said here.

He said, "The EC, keeping this in mind (Khan's statement on Kargil conflict) should take it seriously and initiate strong action against SP immediately."

Terming the UP minister's remark as an "insult to the bravery of the soldiers," Trivedi said, "The communal comment by Azam Khan during the elections shows the politics of communalism. It is an attempt to communalise national security."

He also asked SP leaders whether they visited the houses of soldiers who died at the border.

"We would like to ask SP that if its leaders have visited the house of any soldier who died at the border. On the contrary, SP and Congress leaders had gone to visit the houses of terrorists but not visited even the house of the soldier whose head was severed," he said.

Trivedi said one of the jawans was from UP and three senior BJP leaders, including Sushma Swaraj and Nitin Gadkari, had visited his house.

Attacking SP and Congress, he said, "It clearly shows that they do not have concern for them and now they are indulging in low-level politics."

Referring to SP's manifesto in which the party has promised 15 per cent reservation for minorities in security forces, he said, "One should not try to divide the security forces on communal lines. Bristishers had tried to do it and now Congress and SP are trying to do the same."