Buyers question CM Yogi’s decision to stay away from ‘jinxed’ Noida

Homebuyers in Amrapali Group’s projects have been protesting since August 12 outside the builder’s office in Sector 62, demanding justice for their ‘dream home’.

Homebuyers protesting in Noida for several weeks have questioned chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s move to stay away from the city due to a ‘jinx’, which kept away previous chief ministers, including Akhilesh Yadav, from the city for their entire tenure.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath was in Ghaziabad on Thursday. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

Yogi was in neighbouring Ghaziabad on Thursday to lay the foundation stone of a pilgrims’ centre.

Homebuyers in Amrapali Group’s projects have been protesting since August 12 outside the builder’s office in Sector 62, demanding justice for their ‘dream home’.

“Previous UP CM Akhilesh Yadav inaugurated all mega projects in Noida and Greater Noida from Lucknow and chose not to visit Noida due to the jinx. He had once admitted that he did not come to Noida because bureaucrats created this jinx in his mind. I fear if the same will happen with the present CM, he will also stay away from Noida,” said Neeraj Aggarwal, a teacher and resident of Sector 49.

Homebuyers and residents had hoped that Yogi Adityanath would address their issues in person and share a road map for Noida’s development, like he did for Ghaziabad.

“If he can spare time for Ghaziabad then why cannot he do the same for Noida, where homebuyers are facing a bad time? I feel he should have visited Noida first and give a healing touch to homebuyers before going to Ghaziabad, where residents’ issues are not that as bad as compared to Noida. Yogi’s decision to not visit Noida forces us to believe that the jinx kept him away. We did not expect this from him,” said Amrita Singh of Sector 76.

UP urban housing minister Suresh Khanna, however, refuted buyers’ allegations. “He has a busy schedule every day and so sent us to address issues in Noida. There is no such jinx in his mind,” said Khanna.

However, he said he does not know when Yogi will visit Noida. “I do not know that. Whenever he will think fit or there is a need, he will come,” said Khanna.

The Noida ‘jinx’ in the past affected several chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh, including Veer Bahadur Singh, Narayan Dutt Tiwari, Kalyan Singh and Mayawati, who lost their chair soon after visiting the city.

The ‘jinx’ took root after former chief minister Veer Bahadur Singh had to step down in June 1988, a few days after visiting Noida. Bahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati did brave the superstition when she was the chief minister and visited the city at least four times, but when she lost the 2012 assembly election, the ‘jinx’ was back in the news.

“It is to be seen if Yogi Adityanath will break this jinx,” said Singh.