Man Throws Show At Swami Prasad Maurya Over Remarks Against Ramcharitmanas, Arrested

A man hurled a shoe at the national president of Rashtriya Shoshit Samaj Party Swami Prasad Maurya during a rally here on Friday.

The man, identified as Dharmendra Dhakrey, has been and further action is being taken against him, Dauki SHO Rampal Singh said.

A spokesperson of the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha (ABHM) claimed that Dharmendra Dhakrey is associated with the organisation.

Mr Maurya in February left the Samajwadi Party and formed the Rashtriya Shoshit Samaj Party.

The incident happened this evening when Mr Maurya was addressing a rally in support of the party candidate from Fatehpur Sikri in Dauki.

Talking to news agency PTI, ABHM spokesperson Sanjay Jaat said, "One of our members hurled a shoe at Mr Maurya when he was delivering his speech in Dauki. We were against the leader over his remarks against Ramcharitmanas." 

Mr Maurya striked a controversy by alleging that certain verses in the Ramcharitmanas, a sacred text in the Awadhi language based on the epic Ramayana, "insult" a large section of the society on the basis of caste and hence, those should be banned.

"We have also written letters in blood and appealed to admit him in a mental asylum for disrespecting the Hindu saints and Ramcharitmanas," Mr Jaat said.

The members of the mahasabha also threw ink on Maurya's cavalcade and brandished black flags when it was passing from Fatehabad.

The members threw black ink on the cavalcade and chanted 'Jai Shri Ram' slogans.

"We have been following Mr Maurya's cavalcade from the Fatehabad toll on Agra-Lucknow Expressway. Some of the members protested at Fatehabad and showed black flags when it was passing. Besides, they also threw ink on his car," Mr Jaat said.

While leaving the party, Maurya accused the SP leadership of discriminating against him and not defending him over his statements on the Ramcharitmanas and the Ayodhya temple consecration ceremony.

He had joined the Samajwadi Party leaving the BJP ahead of the 2022 assembly polls, contesting the elections unsuccessfully from Fazilnagar.

Before joining BJP in 2016, Swami Prasad Maurya was in the BSP and was leader of opposition in the Akhilesh yadav regime.

Recently, Maurya announced to contest the elections from Kushinagar Lok Sabha seat.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)