A legislator of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Uttar Pradesh has triggered a political controversy after she reportedly cleansed a statue of Dr BR Ambedkar . A member of the legislative assembly (MLA) from Tanda, Sanju Devi incurred sharp criticism from the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) who demanded that she be booked.

The MLA has been accused of washing Dr Ambedkar's statue with milk, applying tika on his forehead and covering him with a saffron-coloured cloth, reported national daily, The Indian Express. In her defence, Devi said, "He was a mahapurush… Under Swachch Bharat Mission we are cleaning several areas and decided to clean the area surrounding this statue as well and to pay him respect"