Dr Neha Singh
Meanwhile, National General Secretary Shivpal Singh Yadav criticised party spokesperson Rajkumar Bhati for his controversial statements at a Buddhist Dhamma Diksha programme and called them a breach of party discipline. Shivpal Yadav also called Bhati’s statement a breach of party discipline. Both senior leaders made it clear that the SP did not want to be associated with statements that could hurt Hindu sentiments. However, the reaction from Uttar Pradesh SP President Shyamlal Pal was different. His view differed from Ram Gopal and Shivpal, both of whom called the statement unacceptable.
He said a spokesperson must consult the leadership before making such comments and left the decision on further action to Akhilesh.
He had earlier defended Bhati, arguing that the choice of religion was a personal matter in a secular country and that neither the party nor the government should interfere.
SP President Akhilesh Yadav and several other party leaders have accused officials of bias and irregularities in the electoral rolls. His statement also emphasised that party workers needed to check the voter lists and report errors in time rather than place all the blame on officials. Another point of disagreement was Bhati’s participation in the Buddhist Dhamma Diksha programme. The video went viral and led to criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He also warned that Bhati could lose his post as spokesperson if he repeated such statements.
On October 20, at Ambedkar Bhawan in Delhi, he recited 22 vows that included rejecting Brahma, Vishnu, Mahesh, Ram and Krishna as deities and refusing to worship them.
However, Ram Gopal said that voters also needed to check their names and report any errors. He said that officials could not be blamed for every mistake and added that he had no information about large-scale fake entries. He also said that complaints from Auraiya had been promptly taken up with the Election Commission (EC) and the superintendent of police. Bhati denied converting to Buddhism and said that he was still a Hindu who respected Buddhist traditions. Ram Gopal made the party’s stand clear and said that Bhati’s comments might be his personal views, but the SP did not support them.
