No riot in 4.5 years, women are safe in UP, says CM Yogi Adityanath

He also appealed to the people to rise above the barriers of caste or region that divide the society.

Amid a row between the Rajput and Gurjar communities over the caste of king Mihir Bhoj, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday unveiled a 15-foot statue of the ninth-century ruler at Mihir Bhoj Degree College in Dadri.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath waves at a gathering after inaugurating a 15-foot statue of the ninth-century ruler at Mihir Bhoj Degree College in Dadri on Wednesday. (Sunil Ghosh/HT photo)

Addressing a crowd at the college, Adityanath said that king Mihir Bhoj fought bravely against “Arab invaders” for many years to protect his motherland. “Similarly, our government has ended lawlessness that earlier prevailed in the state and provided a safe environment to all, particularly to our daughters, in the last four-and-a-half years of our rule. Also, no riot took place in our rule,” the CM said.

Adityanath first visited Greater Noida’s Expo Mart at 10am to attend an event and then reached Dadri. He also inaugurated a higher secondary school and a “sadbhav mandap” (community centre) before leaving for Dhaulana in Hapur to inaugurate multiple development projects there.

In his 24-minute speech, the CM tried to woo Gurjars by praising their leaders. He claimed that king Mihir Bhoj won Kabul in the ninth century. “He (king Bhoj) was so brave that invaders did not dare to attack our land during his reign. And today there is a complete lawlessness in Afghanistan. Similarly, some elements want to create lawlessness in our state. They want to divide our society on caste, language or region’s lines to rule over us,” said the CM.

He also appealed to the people to rise above the barriers of caste or region that divide the society. “All communities and organisations need to join hands and work together,” said the CM, in a veiled reference to the dispute between Rajput and Gurjar communities over the caste of king Mihir Bhoj.

“This generation should be presented with correct facts about freedom fighters and great personalities. They did not fight for caste, village or a region but for the country,” said Adityanath.

The two communities -- Rajput and Gurjar -- are fighting over the roots of king Mihir Bhoj. Rajputs have maintained that he was a ‘Pratihar Rajput king’ while Gurjars claim he was a Gurjar king.

On Monday, some members of the Rajput community announced that they would protest against Adityanath during his visit to Greater Noida’s Dadri. But the event took place peacefully due to heavy police presence on Wednesday.