New Delhi: Five workers of the Samajwadi Party were arrested on Wednesday for attempting to create unrest in Kanpur ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit.
According to an FIR, those arrested are Sachin Kesarwani, a worker of the Samajwadi Chhatra Sabha, Ankur Patel, Nikesh Kumar, Shukant Sharma and Abhishek Rawat, IANS reported.
Following the arrest, Samajwadi Party suspended the five members, ANI reported.
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Police said a conspiracy was being hatched to create unrest in Kanpur ahead of PM Narendra Modi's visit on Tuesday. Police said SP workers vandalised a car that had BJP flags and a poster of PM Modi. They also burnt an effigy of PM Modi on a roadside in the city, IANS reported.
However, an investigation revealed that the SP workers vandalised their own car after decorating it as that of the BJP. The video was then widely circulated on social media platforms in an attempt to create unrest at the Prime Minister's event.
Police said further investigation into the matter would continue and those behind the violence would face strict action.
Hitting out at the SP for the incident, BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra said, "Just before the Prime Minister addressed the rally, a video went viral on social media. There was a BJP car in that video, some lotus (symbol of BJP) stickers were put on it and a poster of the Prime Minister was also put on the back of the car. Later, an investigation was done by police and it was found that this car was also not of BJP worker but of Ankur Patel, another leader of SP Chhatra Sabha."
On Tuesday, PM Modi inaugurated a section of the Kanpur metro rail project and the 356-km long Bina-Panki multi-product pipeline project.