NEW DELHI:
Uttar Pradesh chief minister
Yogi Adityanath on Saturday criticised the
Congress manifesto
, comparing its proposals to the “cruel rule of Mughal emperor
Aurangzeb
,” mentioning that the manifesto referenced to ‘
jizya
‘, a tax historically imposed on Hindus in medieval India and promoted
cow slaughter
. He also said that the Congress intends to snatch
quota benefits
for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes to appease “its vote bank”.
Addressing a rally in Ashok Nagar town of Guna Lok Sabha constituency, which was in support of BJP candidate and union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, the chief minister praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership for providing respect to faith, bringing welfare schemes for the poor and honour to the country.
CM Adityanath said, “You have heard the name of a cruel Mughal ruler called Aurangzeb. Decent Muslim families don’t name their children after him. He levied jizya. What is it? It is inheritance tax being talked about by the Congress,”
The chief minister said PM Modi on the other hand says heritage should be respected, citing the 500-year movement for the Ram temple in
Ayodhya
, during which numerous Hindus made sacrifices.
“Forget about respect to heritage, the Congress is talking about levying tax on the wealth of your ancestors. Rahul Gandhi says he will X-ray your property and take half of it after his party comes to power and it will be called virasat tax (inheritance tax). Will you ever give jizya? No Indian can accept this,” he added.
Attacking the Congress manifesto further, he said that the party will try to reduce the reservation benefits of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and OBCs, reallocating them to its voter base, similar to past actions done in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. He accused Congress of intending to grant minorities complete freedom to eat and drink as per their choice and then went on to link it to cow slaughter and beef consumption.
“Are the food habits of minorities different from that of the majority (community? The general food habits are the same but the majority of society does not eat beef and opposes cow slaughter. Now Congress has stooped so low that it will support cow slaughter,” the UP chief minister said.
“This is not the Congress that contributed to the Independence struggle. Will you become a partner in this sin? Will there be cow slaughter in the land of Ram and Krishna?” he asked the crowd.
Yogi Adityanath, praised the Prime Minister for his accomplishments and cited the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya and the welfare schemes being run by the Centre. He said, “Terrorism and Naxalism were at their peak before 2014. But now Pakistan comes forward with a clarification even if a firecracker bursts in India. This is new India. We are not aggressors but we don’t spare those who make a move against us.”
CM Adityanath also hailed the Scindia family’s historical fight against the Afghans and recalled the contribution of Rajmata Vijaya Raje Scindia, grandmother of the union minister, in the Ram Temple movement and nation building.
Addressing the crowd, Scindia listed the development works done in Guna and said he had heard about corruption and the presence of the land mafia in Ashok Nagar and warned them of actions post-elections.
Guna constituency is scheduled to go to the polls on May 7.
(With inputs from agencies)
