Lucknow: Union Minister of State and senior BJP leader Ajay Mishra Teni has been dropped from BJP's star campaigner list for Uttar Pradesh. His son Ashish Mishra is accused in the Lakhimpur Kheri incident on October 3, 2021, in which 13 people including Ashish were accused of killing farmers by running them over with a vehicle. Ashish was arrested on October 9.
The farmers gathered to stage a protest demonstration against Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya at Tikunia village under Lakhimpur Kheri district.
Following the incident, the Opposition parties have been demanding that Teni be sacked from the Union Ministry. Earlier Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that the BJP-led Government at the Centre was shielding Teni. Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the issue, Khagre further alleged that he was not taking any action even as the report by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) was submitted.
The SIT termed the Lakhimpur Kheri incident as "a pre-planned conspiracy".
The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) has repeatedly demanded the resignation of Teni. It has staged several protest demonstrations against him.
Denying the allegation Teni earlier said that the demand for his resignation on the moral ground does not have any basis as he was not involved in any manner with the Lakhimpur Kheri incident.
Also Read:Lakhimpur Kheri Violence: Allahabad HC sets aside bail plea of Ashish Misra Teni
The names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president J P Nadda and Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari have been included in the list.
