Gujarat government must go over attacks on workers: Sharad Yadav

New Delhi: Loktantrik Janata Dal (LJD) patron Sharad Yadav on Tuesday said the BJP-led Gujarat government should quit for failing to protect migrant workers in the state after a worker from Bihar was held for raping a toddler.

"The Gujarat government has failed to provide security to the residents of other states, especially those from the Hindi-speaking states. So this government should immediately step down," Yadav said in a statement.

He said it was "extremely unfortunate" that the workers from states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh had been "forced to flee" from Gujarat after widespread attacks on them following the rape of a 14-month-old in Sabarkantha district on September 28.

"These workers have been providing services to the people of Gujarat for the past several years. Surprisingly, the BJP is in power both in the Centre and in Gujarat, yet it is unable to protect the workers of other states."

He added: "The present exodus of migrant workers from the state shows that the BJP government is not for the people of the disadvantaged sections of the poor and the society... This is nothing but an attempt to spoil harmony in the country."