Lucknow, July 16 (IANS) The Uttar Pradesh unit of the Congress Thursday announced a state-wide protest beginning Friday against the arrest of its chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi and demanded the arrest of those involved in vandalism and arson at her residence here.
“Criminal cases must be slapped against the BSP (ruling Bahujan Samaj Party) workers, who targeted the Congress leader’s residence late Wednesday. We demand immediate arrest of the BSP men involved in the incident,” senior Congress leader and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Ram Naresh Yadav told reporters.

“From Friday, in every district of the state our party workers will carry out massive campaigns against the autocratic functioning of the (BSP) government,” he added.

The Congress will also seek Governor T.V. Rajeswar’s intervention in this matter.

“A delegation of Congress activists will shortly meet the governor to apprise him about the political vendetta unleashed by Mayawati against our party leader,” said Yadav.

Joshi was Thursday sent to Moradabad jail on 14-day judicial custody on the charge of insulting Chief Minister Mayawati. She was booked under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act for her alleged derogatory remarks against the BSP chief.

A mob ransacked Joshi’s house in the state capital and set it ablaze late Wednesday night - around the same time as her arrest near Ghaziabad.