Samajwadi Party chief and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Akhilesh Yadav took a holy dip at the Triveni Sangam in Prayagraj Mahakumbh Mela. Yadav's visit comes amid ongoing criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over his remark regarding the Uttar Pradesh cabinet meeting held earlier this week at the Maha Kumbh.
Before taking the holy dip, Akhilesh spoke to the media and said that the message from Mahakumbh should be positive and not divisive. He said, "People come here with their personal faith. I took 11 holy dips. There is no place for divisive and negative politics... The day I took a dip at Haridwar - that day was a festival. Today, I got the opportunity to take a holy dip here... The people in govt shouldn't make this event a sports event... I have seen that older people who are coming from various places - there should have been the kind of management that nobody has to face any difficulty."
Meanwhile, UP Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak said that everyone is welcome at Maha Kumbh and assured that good arrangements have been made there. "Everyone is welcome (at the Mahakumbh). There are very good arrangements, everyone is welcome," Pathak said.
Earlier, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath slammed SP Chief Akhilesh Yadav for "criticising" Maha Kumbh and said that the former UP CM is "playing the faith of the people of India.
UP Cabinet Minister Baby Rani Maurya when asked about Akhilesh Yadav's visit, said, "This is an ancient tradition, every citizen should take a bath. When our Prime Minister, President, and former President are all taking a bath, then why shouldn't Akhilesh ji take a bath? Is he not a resident of this country?"
(With inputs from ANI)