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Ahead of 2022 assembly polls, BJP ministers embark on Jan Ashirwad Yatras in UP
The Jan Ashirwad Yatras aim to popularise the “achievements” of Bharatiya Janata Party led governments at the Centre and in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the crucial assembly elections in the state next year.
Ahead of the 2022 assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, Union ministers from the state kicked off seven ‘Jan Ashirwad Yatras’ on Monday with the aim to spread awareness about achievements of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led governments at the Centre and the state while touring about 120 assembly segments and covering nearly 3500 kms. The mass connect drive comes about seven months before the crucial UP assembly elections.
“We are working to ensure that all those who don’t have a roof on their heads get them by August 15, 2022. We will tell the people about it, update them on various initiatives and naturally would seek people’s blessings too as the yatra itself is named ‘Jan Ashirwad’,” said Kaushal Kishore, the Mohanlalganj MP, who is the Union minister of state for housing and urban affairs. He was referring to PM Awas Yojana (PMAY) which aims to construct 21.4 million houses in rural areas and 11.2 million units in urban areas by 2022. A Dalit by caste, Kishore started his yatra from Unnao and his yatra will culminate at Sitapur on August 18 after touching various assembly segments in Unnao, Rae Bareli and Barabanki.
During the welcome function for Kishore, Ajay Mishra, the Lok Sabha MP from Lakhimpur Kheri and Union minister of state for home and Pankaj Choudhary, the Lok Sabha MP from Maharajganja and Union minister of state for finance, social distancing protocols were thrown to the winds and majority of the part workers were seen without face masks.
“Abhi tak lagaye thhey, bas abhi hataye (I had it on all through, have just removed it),” said one of the cadres when asked about violation of the Covid containment protocols.
Ajay Mishra, before embarking on his yatra from Sandila, Hardoi, said, “We will meet the masses and seek their blessings. Sensing people’s mood, we are confident that based on the various initiatives of our government and pro-people measures, we will form our own majority government [in the state].”
Mishra’s yatra will pass through Hardoi, Lakhimpur, Bahraich, Gonda, Ayodhya before culminating at Ambedkar Nagar on August 19.
Pankaj Choudhary said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi has always described himself as the pradhan sevak (chief servant) setting the template for us. Naturally, the yatra is aimed at connecting with the masses and seeking their blessings.”
Choudhary’s yatra will move from Basti via Barabanki, Siddharthnagar and Ayodhya. It will conclude at Choudhary’s Lok Sabha constituency of Maharajganj in eastern Uttar Pradesh on August 18.
Party leaders said these yatras were thought of after Prime Minister Narendra Modi was prevented by the Opposition from introducing the new ministers inducted into his cabinet on July 8 in the Lok Sabha.
UP BJP chief Swatantra Dev said the party’s state general secretary and member of legislative council (MLC) Govind Narayan Shukla has been made in-charge of these yatras covering several religious cities, including Ayodhya, Mathura, Kashi (Varanasi) and Chitrakoot.
BL Verma, minister of state for development of northeastern region and cooperation, will lead one of the seven yatras from Vrindavan, Mathura. Verma is the protégé of former UP chief minister Kalyan Singh.
After covering Mathura and various assembly constituencies in Agra, Ghaziabad, Gautam Buddh Nagar and Bulandshahr, Verma’s yatra will conclude at Budaun on August 19.
Union minister of state for law and justice SP Singh Baghel will start his yatra from Firozabad and conclude it in Mathura.
On August 17, Union minister of state for micro, small and medium enterprises, Bhanu Pratap Verma will start his yatra from Lalitpur and reach Fatehpur on August 19 via Jhansi, Mahoba, Banda before it ends in Chitrakoot.
BJP ally and Apna Dal (S) leader Anupriya Patel, the Union minister of state for commerce and industry, will start her yatra from Prayagraj on August 18 and it will end on August 19 in Mirzapur, her Lok Sabha constituency.
