After the Lok Sabha elections, the image of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was badly damaged. Due to BJP’s defeat in UP against Samajwadi Party, his position in the party also weakened. The way both his Deputy CMs Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak had opened a front against him is not a secret hidden from anyone. The discussion about his removal has also come to an end for the time being, but it cannot be said that everything is fine with him in the party. The thing to note is that in the meanwhile Yogi Adityanath’s style seems to have changed a bit. Since few days, Yogi has started appearing in his old attitude (extreme Hindutva). Obviously, there is discussion in the political circles as to how and why this sudden makeover of Yogi has happened. Is he returning to his old form to teach a lesson to his opponents in the internal politics of the party? Or he feels that this version of him will be liked more in the by-elections to be held in the next few weeks in UP. Because the way Yogi Adityanath is engaged whole-heartedly for the by-elections to be held on 10 seats in Uttar Pradesh, it seems that he has made victory in these elections a question of prestige.
Why is Yogi’s extreme Hindutva form being discussed?
Yogi Adityanath has been a firebrand leader of Hindutva. For this he is not even dependent on Bharatiya Janata Party. Yogi Adityanath had formed his own Hindu Yuva Vahini in Gorakhpur before joining BJP. He has also been getting his people to contest elections in the areas around Gorakhpur on the election symbol of this party. The Hindutva of Hindu Yuva Vahini used to be more aggressive than that of BJP. At present, after joining BJP, the aggression in his tone had reduced. After becoming the Chief Minister, he started talking about Rajdharma. But in the last few days, a dramatic change has been seen in Yogi. Political analyst: Yogi’s old form is visible in him. There were three steps taken by Yogi in the last few days in which his old style and form can be seen.
In late July, the state government introduced a bill to amend the anti-conversion law, making the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Act, 2021 more stringent. The UP Assembly passed the amendment bill on July 30, reiterating its intention to end love jihad.
Another example was the passing of orders to roadside vendors and shopkeepers on the Kavad Yatra route to display their names outside their establishments. This directive, first announced by the police in Muzaffarnagar district last month, was considered against Muslims.
Last week, Adityanath also discussed the Bangladesh crisis and the situation of Hindus in neighboring countries. He alleged that the opposition is maintaining silence about him due to vote-bank politics. Yogi said that it is our duty to protect the Hindus of Bangladesh and support them in times of crisis and we will always stand with them. No matter what the circumstances, our values remain steadfast. Being a Hindu in Bangladesh is not a mistake but a blessing. Not only this, many other incidents and statements have come in the meantime which seem to indicate that the Chief Minister is now returning to his old form.
Milkipur by-election and Ayodhya rape case
Although the Bharatiya Janata Party has lost many seats in Uttar Pradesh in the Lok Sabha elections, the entire party is saddened by losing the Ayodhya seat. The hurt of losing Ayodhya will definitely be deep for Yogi Adityanath. After becoming CM, he himself kept monitoring the construction of Ram temple and the development works taking place in Ayodhya. Despite this, the people rejected BJP from here. Now Yogi has made Milkipur seat, which falls within the Ayodhya parliamentary seat, a question of his prestige. Current MP of Ayodhya, Awadhesh Prasad was MLA from Milkipur. After becoming MP, he had to leave this seat. Perhaps this is the reason why the BJP opposition wants to prove its importance by winning the Milky Pur by-election. This is the reason why Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath made the Ayodhya rape case an issue. Yogi Adityanath claimed in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly that rape case accused Moeed Khan has links with the Samajwadi Party and is involved in the rape of a 12-year-old girl.
In this case, Moeed Khan and his associate Raju Khan, who belonged to Bhadarsa, Uttar Pradesh, were arrested from Pura Kalandar area on July 30. Ayodhya SSP Raj Karan Nayyar had told the media that through video recording, the accused had tortured the victim. Intimidated and threatened.
Later CM Yogi also met the victim’s family. Bulldozer action was also taken on the house and establishments of accused Moeed. Obviously, Yogi’s old form among the public can prove helpful in him winning this seat in Milkipur by-election. Yogi has also unveiled the statue of Paramhans Ramchandra Das, the flag bearer of Ram Mandir movement in Ayodhya a few days ago.
Meanwhile, another seat which BJP is trying to snatch from SP is Karhal seat. Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav has been the MLA on this seat. After winning the Kannauj Lok Sabha seat, Yadav had to resign from Karhal Assembly. BJP wants to take revenge of Ayodhya by defeating Samajwadi Party from Karhal. Bharatiya Janata Party has handed over the responsibility of this area to State Vice President Brij Bahadur Bhardwaj along with Jaiveer Singh, Yogendra Upadhyay and Ajit Pal. BJP is continuously holding meetings here. State Deputy CM Brajesh Pathak was also here on Sunday. This seat is the stronghold of Samajwadi Party and Mulayam Singh Yadav family. If Yogi Adityanath exerts force in the by-elections, a large number of Baghel, Shakya, Kshatriya and Brahmin voters can support BJP. Since the issue of development works and law and order has weakened, BJP finds Yogi’s old form only useful to gather its voters.
Yogi knows that his aggressive Hindutva strategy will defeat his opponents in the party.
Opposition to Yogi Adityanath has not subsided in the party yet. The manner in which the Nazul Land Bill was stopped in the Legislative Council can be considered the biggest example. There could have been mutual discussion within the party to stop the bill but it did not happen. Yogi Adityanath is understanding that if he wants to play a long innings in BJP, he will have to do something which no one else can do. Obviously Yogi Adityanath is the poster boy of Hindutva. This is the reason why his meetings are in demand for election campaign across the country. He also held 207 rallies in the Lok Sabha elections. Which was slightly less than PM Modi. Be it the southern or eastern part of the country, Gujarat or Punjab, Yogi Adityanath is in demand everywhere. This demand exists only because Hindus like his firebrand image. Yogis have understood that they have to work on their core only. Perhaps this is the reason why he has started playing on the old pitch again.