BJP MLA claims ruckus by SP workers outside her home frightened daughter into skipping school

Lucknow/Ballia, Sep 3 (PTI) A group of women workers of the Samajwadi Party protested outside BJP MLA Ketakee Singh's residence in Lucknow on Wednesday over her remarks against Akhilesh Yadav, even as the lawmaker alleged they created a ruckus which frightened her minor daughter, making her skip school.

Singh was in Ballia when the incident happened. Alleging that the protesters resorted to vandalism and attempted to enter her Lucknow residence, the MLA said she would get an FIR lodged in the matter and also raise it with her party's top leadership.

The workers of the opposition party's women's wing -- SP Mahila Sabha -- said they had gathered outside Singh's official residence at the Gulista Colony in the state capital to "gift" her a 'toti' (water tap), as a mark of their protest.

They were enraged over the legislator's allegation that the 'toti' (taps), which went missing from the chief minister's residence when Akhilesh Yadav's government was ousted, are yet to be traced.

What added fuel to their anger was the remarks of the BJP MLA from Ballia district's Bansdih seat, targeting the Samajwadi Party chief over his comments on the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

On Wednesday morning, the women workers of the Samajwadi Party, with banners and posters in their hands, raised slogans outside Singh's residence. An SP leader said the ruling party's leaders have been using "water tap" as an insult towards Akhilesh Yadav.

"We have come here to gift taps to Ketakee Singh. We are also here to demand accountability on issues of law and order, employment, crimes against women, lathi charge on students, and farmers' income," SP leader Neha Yadav told reporters.

The protesters were later whisked away from the neighbourhood by local police.

In Ballia, Singh alleged the protesters surrounded and frightened her 15-year-old girl in Lucknow, and termed it an act of cowardice.

"What did my daughter do? You made her, a class 10 student, who was ready for school, get out of her uniform and stay back home out of fear. For how long will she skip school?" the MLA said.

"I will not allow my daughter to be used as a pawn in politics. If politics enters homes, no daughter will be safe." Singh also alleged that Samajwadi Party workers have a "pattern of insulting women" and cited the infamous 1995 guesthouse incident involving Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati.

"Come face me, shoot me if you have the courage, but do not traumatise a child. My daughter is now worried about her studies. I trust Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in ensuring her safety," she said.

Later, when PTI asked Singh to elaborate on the claims related to her daughter, she said, "My daughter was in a school uniform, ready to go to school. But there was a lot of noise outside. There was vandalism and hooliganism, and attempts were being made to enter the house." "She changed her dress and was stopped from going to school, fearing some untoward incident might happen. The SP people forced her to do so." About filing a police case, the MLA said she has consulted her party and even spoke to BJP state president Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary and Sahajanand Rai. "Further action will be taken after receiving a reply from the party," she added.

In a video that surfaced on social media, the MLA's daughter is heard saying, "Today a crowd gathered outside our house and raised slogans because my mother had made a statement yesterday about Akhilesh Yadav. They think they can scare a teenage girl for political gain. That is what has been taught to them, that's their education." "I must tell them something: I won't be scared, however much you try. But if you raise a finger at me, my mother would split you in two. Go to Ballia... talk to her there. But scaring a teenage girl who is alone in a house that is not proper politics. Neither my mother is scared of you, nor am I," she added.

Lucknow Police officials, when contacted, told PTI in the evening that they were yet to receive any complaint in the matter.

Asked about the protest and the allegations, the ACP of Hazratganj, Vikas Kumar Jaiswal, said, "Three women protestors had gathered outside the house around 10 am. We have a protocol for dealing with women, and they were later taken away from the spot following the protocol." The SP chief's social media post questioning the whereabouts of a bus service flagged off between Janakpur and Ayodhya and MLA Singh, accusing Yadav of avoiding a visit to the Ram Temple, had sparked the SP Mahila Sabha workers' protest on Wednesday.

Singh also taunted the former chief minister with allegations of missing fittings from the CM's residence during his tenure. The row escalated when the SP media cell posted videos and articles linking Singh to alleged illegal sawmills and corruption.

In one post, the opposition party alleged, "The MLA is angry over action on illegal sawmills because she is no longer getting full tree logs. Now she is searching for taps instead." In another post, SP accused her of using "tap water to wash away allegations of corruption". PTI COR/KIS NSD NSD