Haridwar, June 5: Uttar Pradesh police this evening blocked Baba Ramdev from proceeding to Noida to relaunch his fast, bringing to the fore the challenges before him in finding havens in states not ruled by the BJP.

Ramdev has threatened to resume the fast in Haridwar, the pilgrimage town that falls in the BJP-ruled Uttarakhand, if Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayavati denies him permission to set up base in Noida on the outskirts of Delhi.

Citing Mayavati’s stinging criticism of the way the Centre emptied out the Ramlila grounds last night, the yoga practitioner said he would make repeated requests to his “respected sister”.

However, Mayavati’s traditional anathema towards Sangh parivar affiliates such as the VHP, which are now openly backing Ramdev, and the corruption cloud hanging above her administration are expected to stand in the way of any benevolence from the chief minister.

The yoga televangelist was stopped at Purkazi in Muzaffarnagar district of Uttar Pradesh, moments after his convoy had crossed over from Uttarakhand.

The IG of Meerut zone, which covers Muzaffarnagar, contacted Mayavati’s office in Lucknow and was told to stop Ramdev’s entourage. Section 144 has been clamped in areas bordering Uttarakhand, officials said.

Ramdev had tried to outwit Uttar Pradesh police by calling a news conference at his Haridwar ashram around 9pm but slipped out before that. The police, who got wind of his plans, intercepted him along with around 50 supporters and sent them back to Haridwar. The border action triggered a commotion that led to 20km-long snarls along the busy highway.

Back at his ashram in Haridwar, a teary-eyed Ramdev told a news conference: “I will talk to my respected sister Mayavati and assure her that our fast in Noida will be peaceful. I will try to fast again… Mayavati is now in Bangalore. This was an administrative decision, not hers.”

But Ramdev seemed to have been reconciled to the grim chances of Mayavati relenting. “I appeal to the people of Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh to come to Patanjali Yogpeeth (his ashram in Haridwar) and join me,” he said.

The border action came despite public comments — probably driven by local compulsions — by Mayavati and rival Mulayam Singh Yadav against the crackdown in Delhi.

While Mulayam said the Centre had lost its “mental balance”, Mayavati demanded a Supreme Court probe, just like Rahul Gandhi who had sought a judicial probe into the police action against the agitating Noida farmers last month.

“It is undemocratic and inhuman,” Mayavati told a BSP meeting in Bangalore.

Ramdev had criticised Mayavati for receiving garlands made of currency last year. But one BSP leader said: “Now it is between the Congress and the BSP. Which rival will not try to exploit this situation?”

Mulayam said the police “descended on Ramdev and his supporters at midnight as if they were mounting an attack on a foreign enemy camp”.

A Samajwadi Party leader later said: “Ramdev belongs to Mulayam’s caste (Yadav) and he wants to woo thousands of Baba’s supporters.”

At the news conference tonight, Ramdev said: “Five thousand workers are missing…. We have petitioned the Supreme Court and expect a hearing tomorrow.”

Asked where Acharya Balakrishna, his virtual second-in-command, was, Ramdev said: “Balakrishna is safe somewhere. I have sent him on a mission…. We have to take steps for self-defence”

Balakrishna is believed to be the brain behind the ashram’s finances but has faced allegations of questionable dealings with companies. To a question, Ramdev said: “There are some things that cannot be handled by trusts. So we have also dealings through companies. We have 100 per cent transparency.”

Earlier in the day, Ramdev targeted Sonia Gandhi.

Echoing the hawkish leaders of the Sangh parivar, Ramdev said: “She (Sonia) is running the government by remote-control. She is the daughter-in-law of this country (but) she does not love the mothers and sisters of this country. If anything happens to me, Sonia and the Congress government will be responsible.”