On December 22, a wedding under the Special Marriage Act witnessed protests by local BJP leaders who believed it was a case of ‘love jihad’ On December 22, a wedding under the Special Marriage Act witnessed protests by local BJP leaders who believed it was a case of ‘love jihad’

Five days after members of the Ghaziabad BJP unit protested against what they suspected was a case of ‘love jihad’ and clashed with the police, the BJP district president Ajay Sharma has been removed from his post.

A statement from the office of Vidyasagar Sonkar, in charge of the BJP state headquarters, said Sharma was relieved of duty following “directions from BJP state president Mahendra Nath Pandey, due to fresh turn of events in Ghaziabad”. The letter also states that Man Singh Goswami, the city general secretary, has been appointed the new president. Goswami took charge at 11:30 pm on Tuesday.

Claiming that he accepted the decision communicated to him Tuesday, Sharma said that he had spoken to senior leaders of the party on the matter. “I was told that I didn’t follow protocol during the incident. I was the Ghaziabad city president of the party, how could I have not been there for workers of the party, especially when they were being lathi-charged. For Hindutva and for party workers, I am willing to face bullets not just lathis,” he said. Hindu-Muslim marriage disrupted in Ghaziabad: Bride’s father had informed authorities, yet mob turned up

On December 22, a wedding under the Special Marriage Act witnessed protests by local BJP leaders who believed it was a case of ‘love jihad’. Around 12 pm on Friday, the wedding celebrations were disrupted, said police. At the time, Sharma had claimed, “We didn’t enter the venue forcefully. When we tried meeting them, police stopped us and lathi-charged. We sat outside in protest against the police action.” Following the incident, two FIRs were lodged, Sharma was among the 60 accused named.

📣 The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines

For all the latest India News, download Indian Express App.