Samajwadi Party supporters protest against Election Commission ban on Azam Khan

Irate Samajwadi Party supporters staged a demonstration and tried to burn effigies of the Election Commission in protest against the poll body's ban on rallies of Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan in Uttar Pradesh, police said.

The party supporters staged a demonstration in Jhinjhana and Khandhla towns in Shamli district on Saturday to register their protest against the Election Commission's decision of withdrawing the ban on BJP leader Amit Shah but not on Khan.

Meanwhile, the police have registered two cases against 50 supporters under Jhinjhina and Kandhla police station in this connection for violation of the model code of conduct. The police have also included the names of Haji Sarfaraz, Chairman of Nagar Panchayat, Jhinjhana town and Javed Hasan, brother of Chairman of Nagar Panchayat, Kandhla.

The Election Commission had banned Khan from campaigning in UP on April 11 after his alleged provocative speech and had asked the authorities to initiate criminal proceedings against him.