India
UP government paints Lucknow Haj House Saffron
After Uttar Pradesh secretariat annex building donned saffron, the green-and-white exterior wall of Haj House in Lucknow, used by Muslims as a transit place on their way to pilgrimage in Mecca, is now painted saffron in color by Uttar Pradesh government. Painting the walls of the UP Haj House in Lucknow in saffron hue erupted a controversy with opposition parties slamming the government.Opposition parties have objected the move by the state government, accusing the government of a deliberate provocation by raising religious sentiments.
Since assuming power in March last year as state Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath has pursued his “saffron” agenda, quite literally. He began by getting his office – the Lal Bahadur Shastri Bhawan – in the same city painted saffron.”There is no need for controversy in such things…the building looks beautiful,” UP minister Mohsin Raza said. “The government is doing politics of colors and trying to hide its failures,” Samajwadi Party spokesperson Sunil Singh Sajan told. “Saffron is the color of faith for us, but can it give food to the hungry? Or medicine to the ill? If coloring everything saffron had been of any help, Yogi should have achieved so much in 10 months. He wears saffron from head to toe. Still, he has not been able to do anything for the people of the state.”
The city police had then said the practice was “causing nuisance, annoyance, embarrassment, obstruction to the free movement of any danger to the vehicular traffic as well as pedestrians affecting the public order”.The order passed in favor of public order prohibits begging in the state capital. The order was issued by Police Commissioner V V Srinivas Rao and he banned unauthorized flying activities of remotely controlled drones, para-gliders and micro-light aircraft in the city limits. The order will be applicable from 7th of January 2018 for one month.
