Police booked Mayawati's nephew Akash Anand in hate speech

LUCKNOW:

Sitapur police

on Sunday filed an FIR against Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) National Coordinator and

Mayawati's nephew

,

Akash Anand

,

Lok Sabha

party candidate

Mahendra Yadav

from Sitapur, and others including Shyam Awasthi, Akshay Kalra, and Vikas Rajvanshi, along with 35 unidentified individuals, for

hate speech

.
The incident occurred during a rally organized by the BSP in support of Mahendra Yadav at Raja College campus in the Kotwali police station area of Sitapur on Sunday.

The FIR was lodged by SHO Kotwali, Anup Kumar Shukla.

In the FIR, Shukla stated that during the rally, Akash Anand referred to the ruling central government (BJP) as "a government of terrorists" and urged attendees to hit representatives of other parties seeking votes with shoes. Shukla emphasized that Anand's speech not only disrupted the peace but also violated the model code of conduct in the area. Others named in the FIR were allegedly supportive of Anand's remarks and applauded them.
The FIR has been filed under several charges including IPC 171c (undue influence at elections), 153b (promoting disharmony), 188 (violation of the code of conduct), 502(2) (statements promoting hatred), and Section 125 of the Representation of People’s Act.
Superintendent of Police, Sitapur, Chakresh Mishra, confirmed the registration of the FIR and stated that an investigation will be carried out based on the video footage of the rally.