Urging Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to withdraw support from Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government at the Centre, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Friday slammed BJP after he was stopped from visiting Jayaprakash Narayan International Centre (JPNiC) in Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow.

On Thursday, the former Chief Minister was stopped from accessing the statue in the capital by the authorities, sparking protests by Samajwadi Party workers, which continued on Friday when Yadav revisited the site.

Pointing out that many socialist leaders like Kumar are currently supporting the government, Yadav said Nitish Kumar who rose from the movement led by Jai Prakash Narayan should take “this opportunity to withdraw support” from a government that is preventing socialists from paying tribute to their icon.  JD(U), Nitish Kumar’s party, plays a key role in maintaining the NDA government’s parliamentary majority.

Stopped from visiting the JPNIC, at around 10.30 am, a bust of Narayan, mounted on a vehicle, was garlanded by Yadav on the road packed with SP workers, several of them donning red caps and raising slogans and party flags.

Earlier in the day, Yadav retorted sharply at the saffron party and said: “Whether it is the BJP people or their government, their every action is a symbol of negativity. To prevent the Samajwadi people from garlanding the ‘Jai Prakash Narayan Ji’ statue on his birth anniversary like last time, barricades have been put up around our private residence to stop them.”

Yadav accused the BJP of creating hurdles in the path of harmony, peace, reservation, farmers’ welfare, women’s safety, youth development, employment generation, and development of PDAs (pichhde, Dalit, alpsankhyak).

“The BJP has always been against freedom fighters and the freedom movement. They have learnt from the colonial powers and supported them secretly. Everyone is saying today that they don’t want the BJP,” the former CM said.

Hitting out at BJP, he said the BJP has always been against the freedom fighters and the freedom movement. “They have learnt how to block the path by secretly living with the colonial powers and supporting them. Everyone says today, we don’t want BJP!” he added.

This come a day after Yadav was denied permission to visit the JPNIC, citing “construction work and possibility of many insects due to rain”. Yadav hit out at the BJP while standing before the tin barricades.

The JPNIC was Yadav inaugurated by Yadav in 2016 during his tenure as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, but construction stalled after the BJP’s victory in 2017.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address at the East Asia Summit stressed the importance of dialogue over conflict, warning that solutions to global problems cannot emerge from the battlefield.

The Prime Minister’s remarks come as the world witnesses rising tensions in the Middle East and eastern Europe due to Israel’s escalations with Iran and its proxies in Gaza and Lebanon, and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

Mentioning that peace and stability should be restored as soon as possible, PM Narendra Modi said that conflicts going on in different parts of the world are having the most negative impact on countries of the Global South.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is attending the ASEAN-India and East Asia summits in Laos to boost ties with ASEAN countries, and echoed his stance that diplomacy and peaceful resolutions are the only path forward. He stated that he comes from the land of Buddha, and has repeatedly said this is not an era of war. He added that solutions to problems cannot come from the battlefield.

PM Narendra Modi advocated for a humanitarian approach to conflicts and reiterated India’s commitment to peace and diplomacy. He mentioned that keeping a humanitarian approach, dialogue and diplomacy will have to be given priority. Fulfilling the responsibility of Vishwa Bandhu (global citizen), India will continue to contribute in every possible way in this direction, he continued.

He also pointed to the growing threat of terrorism, urging for global cooperation to tackle the issue. He added that terrorism is also a serious challenge to global peace and security, and to face it, forces believing in humanity will have to work together. He mentioned that mutual cooperation in the areas of cyber, maritime, and space will also have to be strengthened.

PM Narendra Modi also called for a free, open, inclusive, prosperous, and rule-based Indo-Pacific, signalling India’s ongoing concerns regarding China’s aggressive moves in the region. He underlined that the peace, security, and stability of the South China Sea are vital to the progress of the Indo-Pacific. He emphasized that the approach should be one of developmentalism and not expansionism.

Shivshankar Chaurasia, one of the two men, arrested for allegedly raping a teenage girl in Gujarat’s Surat district died in a hospital here after he complained of breathing difficulty in police custody on Thursday.

According to Surat District Superintendent of Police Hitesh Joysar, Chaurasia had complained of difficulty in breathing at around 2.00 pm and was rushed to a health centre in the Kamrej area. He was then referred to the new civil hospital, where he died during treatment,” Joysar added.

The 45-year-old Chaurasia, named in murder and theft cases in the past, and Munna Paswan (40) were arrested on Wednesday for the alleged sexual assault on the minor, PTI reported.

Police will produce Paswan before a court in the evening seeking his remand, the police officer said.

Paswan, Chaurasia and a third person, who is yet to be nabbed, allegedly raped a 17-year-old girl in Mangrol taluka on Tuesday night, according to the police.

The police said that the teenager had gone to the Kim village to meet friends after attending her coaching class. She and her male friend were sitting in a deserted place on their way to a petrol pump along the highway near Mota Borsara village when three men approached them, police added.

While her friend escaped, the trio raped the minor before fleeing with her and her friend’s mobile phones. After being alerted, police registered a case for gang rape and other charges under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

Paswan and Chaurasia were nabbed from a nearby location on Wednesday evening and cops had to open fire while taking the duo into custody, police had said in a release.

Police said several cases had been registered against the two in areas like Ankleshwar, Kadodara, Amirgadh and Karjan.

Chaurasia was booked in a murder case in 2017 in Ankleshwar and for theft in 2023 in Karjan. This year, he was booked under the Arms Act by the Amirgadh police station of Banaskantha.