‘There was a govt in UP’: Yogi Adityanath cautions Mamata Banerjee of her turn

Addressing a rally in Malda, Yogi Adityanath described West Bengal as a ‘land of cultural nationalism and revolution.’ He also hit out at CM Mamata Banerjee for ‘prohibiting Durga Puja.’

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday sought to remind Mamata Banerjee, his counterpart in poll-bound West Bengal, of ‘a government in UP,’ which, he said, ‘used to fire bullets at Ram devotees in Ayodhya.’ The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader also ‘urged’ Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) to see ‘the condition of that government now.’ “Now, it's the TMC government’s turn in West Bengal,” Adityanath said while addressing a rally in Malda, according to news agency ANI.

Adityanath also described West Bengal as a ‘land of cultural nationalism and revolution,’ adding that the entire country is pained to see the ‘environment of anarchy’ in the eastern state. “West Bengal has always been a land of cultural nationalism in India. It has been a land of revolution for India’s freedom struggle. Today it hurts us when we see an environment of anarchy here,” he said.

To emphasise this point, the BJP leader remarked that Bengal is the state from where the country got its national anthem and the national song and is also the land of birth of India’s first Nobel laureate, Rabindranath Tagore, who also authored the national anthem. “The national leadership of the BJP and every worker of the party has come here to connect to the Bengali brothers and sisters to re-establish the identity of Bengal and carry forward a new change through this,” he added.

The Uttar Pradesh chief minister further accused Banerjee’s TMC of prohibiting Durga Puja in the state, also alleging that ‘cow slaughter is forcefully started during Eid.’ “People’s sentiments are toyed with through cow smuggling. The state government remains silent. Now it has attempted to ban the slogan of Jai Shri Ram and attacks are executed,” he added.

Adityanath also sought to remind Banerjee of ‘a government in UP,’ which, he said, ‘used to fire bullets at Ram devotees in Ayodhya.’ He ‘urged’ the TMC to see ‘the condition of that government now.’ “Now, it's the TMC government’s turn in West Bengal,” Adityanath proclaimed.

The assembly elections in West Bengal, which will take place in eight phases from March 27 to April 29, are being seen as a contest primarily between the TMC and the resurgent BJP. While Banerjee is looking at a third term as the chief minister, after winning in both 2011 and 2016, the BJP is aiming at forming its maiden government in the state. Counting of votes and declaration of results are scheduled for May 2.