Balrampur

Suspended Bareilly City Magistrate Alankar Agnihotri on Monday alleged that the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) was effectively operating as the "C team" of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Addressing a gathering organised by the Rashtriya Adhikar Morcha, an outfit he heads, Agnihotri claimed that despite public criticism directed at the CJP by the ruling party, the treatment extended to its leadership suggested otherwise.

"The Cockroach Janata Party is the BJP's C team. In fact, it is the BJP itself," he said. "While the ruling party brands the CJP as anti-national, hundreds of vehicles reportedly assembled to welcome its leader Abhijit Dipke at the airport on June 6. The organisation was also granted permission to hold its protest at Jantar Mantar."

Agnihotri also raised concerns over reports alleging that large sums of money donated at the Ram Temple had gone missing, describing the matter as unfortunate.

According to him, institutions associated with the Sanatan tradition, including temples, monasteries and pilgrimage centres, were being exploited financially under the guise of religious devotion.

He alleged that those in power, despite presenting themselves as defenders of Sanatan values, had failed to preserve the spiritual essence of revered religious centres such as Kashi, Ayodhya, Vrindavan and Mathura.

"They call themselves Sanatanis, but their actions suggest otherwise. Instead of protecting the cultural and spiritual identity of these sacred places, they have focused only on constructing concrete corridors," he said.

His remarks came a day after Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav referred to media reports claiming that crores of rupees from donations offered at the Ram Temple were unaccounted for and urged the judiciary to take note of the issue.

Responding to the allegations, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust General Secretary Champat Rai said internal audits were underway and no evidence had surfaced to substantiate such claims.

Agnihotri also backed Uttar Pradesh minister Sanjay Nishad's recent remarks questioning police encounters in the state. He claimed that members of the Brahmin community had been disproportionately affected by such actions.

He clarified that punishment delivered through the judicial system was acceptable but alleged that state power was being misused in certain instances.

Nishad had recently sought an impartial inquiry into the alleged police encounter involving Kamlesh Chaudhary alias Kamlesh Bind, who was wanted in connection with the murder of Ghazipur hotelier Vineet Rai. The minister had written to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath demanding an investigation by an independent, high-level agency.

Looking ahead to the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, Agnihotri asserted that the Rashtriya Adhikar Morcha, in alliance with like-minded parties, had the potential to contest around 270 seats.

Agnihotri was suspended by the Uttar Pradesh government on January 26 on charges of indiscipline, the same day he submitted his resignation from the Provincial Civil Service (PCS). Following the suspension, he was attached to the office of the Shamli District Magistrate.

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He had announced his resignation citing objections to the new UGC regulations and what he described as the humiliation of Swami Avimukteshwaranand, alleging that the state government was pursuing an anti-Brahmin approach.