New Delhi: BJP leader and former MLA Sangeet Som asked Rajputs to take up arms during an ayudha puja (worship of weapons) event organised by the Rajput Utthan Sabha on Vijaya Dashami in Kheda village in UP’s Meerut on Wednesday.
Som, who was an accused in a case related to the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, made veiled references to the minority community and alleged that “anti-national forces” are attacking the country.
“The way the population of a particular community is increasing, terrorism is increasing, there are talks of separatism, talks of beheading. To end all of this, along with power, weapons will also be needed in the future,” Som said in his address.
“The Rajput society will have to take up arms again,” the former BJP MLA from the Sardhana constituency said.
According to the news agency PTI, the BJP leader said to ensure the progress of a religion, “sacrifice, penance and dedication are needed”. Som claimed that anti-national forces are attacking the country and therefore the importance of weapons has increased.
He also attempted to communalise the Congress’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’, falsely claiming that “green flags” – associated with Islam – were visible in the march in Kerala but not the national flag.
“The day is not far off when green flags will be visible across western Uttar Pradesh, so act wisely,” he said.
Som alleged that efforts were being made to malign Rajputs, including “wrong” depiction in films. “The truth is that Lord Ram and Krishna had to take birth as Rajputs to come on earth,” he said.
Som was the BJP MLA from Sardhana from 2012 to 2022. He lost to Samajwadi Party candidate Atul Pradhan in the assembly elections held earlier this year.
He was accused of playing a role in the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots and was also arrested for uploading an inflammatory video to social media. In March 2021, the UP special investigation team (SIT) filed a closure report in the case against Som. A local court accepted the report because no objection was filed against it. The complainant in the case was inspector Subhodh Kumar Singh, who was killed when right-wing groups attacked a police station in Bulandshahr in 2018.
(With PTI inputs)