After the ongoing spat between Congress and BJP over the mega food park in Amethi, State Congress has now alleged that the Narendera Modi government at the Centre was conspiring to shift the IIIT campus from Amethi.
“ The visit of Union Human resources Development Minister, Smriti Irani to Amethi on Tuesaday was the part of the conspiracy to shift the IIIT campus in Amethi again to Allahabad,” alleged UP Congress vice- president and chairman of media cell, Satyadeo Tripathi. Addressing a press conference here on Tuesday evening, Tripathi alleged that BJP was working to disturb all the developmental works done by the Congress in Amethi and other parts of the state. The IIIT situated at Tikermafi village in Amethi was set up in 2005 by the efforts of local MP Rahul Gandhi and it is linked with the IIIT, Allahabad but how Irani wanted to get it shift to Allahabad.
Meanwhile, Congress workers and leaders held demonstrations at all over 800 blocks in the state to protest against the amendment of the land Acquisition Act. The workers burnt the copies of the proposed amendment in the Act and in some places even the workers burnt the effigy Prime Minister Narendra Modi creating scuffle between the Congress and BJP workers.
Tripathi said that state party president Nirmal Khatri led the agitation at Talgram block in Kannauj district and at Kamalganj block in Farrukhabad districts respectively. Khatri also handed over a cheque of Rs 25,000 to the family member of a farmer Subash Chandra Mishra, who committed suicide after challenging that the state government was not doing anything for the farmers.
Congress vice-president said that all the MlAs had led the agitation in their constituencies while Congress legislature party leader Pradeep Mathur along with MlA Bansi Paharia joined AICC secretary Naseeb Singh and staged demonstration in two blocks of Mathura. In lucknow, former MlA, Vinod Chowdhary, along with district president, Gaurav Chowdhary, chief spokesman of UPCC, Virendra Madan, Konark Dixit etc staged protest at Chinhat block while acting city president, Amit Srivastava `Tyagi’, Ramesh Srivastava, UPCC spokesman, Dwijendra Tripathi, Subodh Srivastava, Pramod Singh, RP Singh, Amarnath Agarwal, Prabhujot Singh Batra etc demonstrated and burnt effigy of PM at collectrate.
Reports of Congress agitation were also received from different parts of the state which passed off peacefully. Tripathi said that on May 26, a meeting of all the block presidents, district and city presidents of the Congress has been convened in lucknow to decide on the future agitational programme of the party. He said that AICC general secretary and in-charge UP, Madusudan Mistri and State president Nirmal Khatri will address the leaders. He further said that in the meeting the leaders will also review the party’s membership drive which will end on May 15.