Abhay Singh, former MLA and Samajwadi Party (SP) candidate from Ayodhya's Gosaiganj Assembly constituency, was arrested after his supporters clashed with those of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Aarti Tiwari on Friday, 18 February.
The clash took place around 9:00 pm when their convoys reportedly came face to face, following which stone pelting and firing also took place. Singh was reportedly present at the spot when the clash broke out between the supporters of the two parties.
"The two convoys came face to face. Both sides have alleged stone pelting and firing. While nobody was injured due the alleged firing, people from both sides have suffered minor injuries. A lot of unsubstantiated claims are being made in several media reports," Shailesh Pandey, SSP Ayodhya, said in a video tweeted by the district police.
He further said that the damages to the cars were being probed and that strict action will be taken against those responsible.
Singh was reportedly arrested by the police at 4:00 am from his residence.
'Being Framed': Abhay Singh Accuses Police of Working for the BJP
In several Facebook posts, Singh said that he is being framed and the ones who are responsible for the attack are being spared.
In a video message after being arrested, Singh said: "The Ayodhya police is framing me in a false case rather than arresting the ones responsible. I am going to jail, now it's your responsibility to take the election campaign forward. You can see the atrocities by the police under the BJP rule."
In another post, he also claimed that the homes of several of his supporters are being raided, alleging that the police is behaving like the "workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)".
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