Lucknow: Rakesh Rathore, a BJP MLA from Sitapur district, has hit out at his own government in Uttar Pradesh, saying that lawmakers like him do not have any freedom to speak the truth.
“This may lead to a sedition charge against me,” he said while talking to reporters.
“I have taken many steps, but what is the stature of legislators? If I speak too much, then sedition charges may be invoked against me,” he said when asked about getting trauma centre opened in the Sitapur.
When asked to clarify his statement, he said, “Do you think MLAs can speak their mind? You know I have raised questions in the past.”
Rakesh Rathore, a first-time MLA, had joined the BJP before the 2017 Assembly elections in the state. He had fought election in the past as an Independent and was also associated with Bahujan Samaj Party.
Last year, Rathore was served a show cause notice after a video clip in which he apparently questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call to light candles and beat ‘thalis’ during the initial days of the lockdown.