UP cops lodge FIR in Maya's bee conspiracy case

An FIR has been lodged by the police into the incident in which a swarm of bees invaded the venue of the Bahujan Samaj Party's 'maharally' in Lucknow on Monday, the police said on Thursday.

"The FIR was lodged against unidentified persons on Wednesday night by a sub-inspector of police at Ashiyana police station, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code related to lighting fire to cause damage," said the police.

A swarm of bees had appeared over the Ramabai Ambedkar ground during BSP's 'maharally', when Chief Minister Mayawati was addressing party workers. After the incident, the BSP alleged that the appearance of the bees at the rally ground was a conspiracy hatched by the opponents of the ruling party, following which the state government ordered an inquiry.

The inquiry is being carried out by Lucknow Deputy Inspector General of Police Rajiv Krishna. Preliminary inquiry has indicated that some persons intentionally lit a fire to cause a smoke and disturb the bees at nearby Ambedkar University to spoil the rally, officials said.

According to experts, the bees that swarmed the rally ground were bigger in size, normally found in forest areas. Addressing party workers, Mayawati had on Wednesday alleged that it was a conspiracy to create a stampede at the ground and turn the rally into a flop.