SP leaders drop plan of temple dedicated to Mulayam

Aligarh: Prompt action by Samajwadi Party leaders saved the party of a major embarrassment when they scuttled a move by some district level leaders here to build a temple and install the statue of party president Mulayam Singh Yadav.

The party, which has been relentlessly bashing the previous BSP government for installing statues of living persons (Mayawati) at important places in the state capital, acted promptly against the move of local leaders who wanted to

set up a temple of Yadav in Nagla Mali locality near Dhanipur Mandi.

"The Saini samaj which is in considerable numbers around Aligarh-Mathura had decided to set up a temple of Mulayam Singh Yadav and bhumi pujan (foundation laying ceremony) was also held on November 22," former state secretary of SP,

Rajesh Saini, said.

"I was invited to the function and when the samaj told me of their plans I took it forward as it was the wish of the people," he said. But the party leaders back in Lucknow took exception to the move and got in touch with Saini here telling him that installing the statues of a living person was against the policy of the party and its established traditions. "After getting the message from the party leaders, I put the proposal before the Saini samaj and the move has since been dropped," Saini said.

Refuting allegations, he said it was wrong to say that a massive temple was planned. "The statue which was planned to be installed was worth Rs 1.25 lakhs unlike the reports that it was worth Rs eight to ten lakhs," Saini said, adding that fund for it was raised only through the contribution of the samaj. Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had said yesterday in Lucknow that "there is no such tradition and we will not allow any such thing to come up."

SP leaders including Mulayam Singh have been critical of statues built by Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati during her tenure as Chief Minister, stressing that "statues of the living are not meant to be installed and garlanded." During the election campaign to the state Assembly earlier this year, the SP had also promised to do away with such statues.