Try and convert me if you can: Akhilesh to BJP

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Friday alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party was ‘misguiding’ people in the name of religious conversions and challenged the saffron party to ‘try and convert’ him.

"People gave the BJP most seats in the recent Lok Sabha polls. But the party is fooling the same people on the name of religious conversion," the chief minister said.

Yadav threw a challenge before the BJP, saying it should ‘try to convert him to another religion’.

Referring to the plans of a ‘mass conversion ceremony’ in Aligarh, announced by a Hindu outfit, Yadav said that it was the responsibility of the district administration to maintain law and order and arrest the trouble makers.

District authorities in Aligarh on Friday issued a warning to those trying to disturb communal amity while asking citizens not to get provoked ahead of the proposed December 25 ceremony.

The leaders of Aligarh-based Hindu Jagaran Samiti had announced a mass conversion ceremony of Christians and Muslims, described by them as ‘homecoming’, at a local college in Kanpur on December 25.

Following this, a delegation of Christian leaders met the DM on Friday to express their concerns on the statements and were given an assurance by him that he would look into the matter.

Hindu Jagaran Samiti had announced its plan for mass conversion on December 25, which was welcomed by the local BJP members of Parliament who said people are within their rights to choose their religion.