Yogi Adityanath’s Tweet Ahead of the First Phase of Uttar Pradesh Elections Sparks Row; Pinarayi Vijayan and Shashi Tharoor’s Sarcastic Retorts 

The impact of the months’ long farmers’ protest will be reflected in the electoral battle in Uttar Pradesh today for 58 seats in Phase 1.   

Just hours ahead of the high-stakes Phase 1 electoral battle of Uttar Pradesh, BJP Uttar Pradesh’s Twitter handle posted a video where Yogi Adityanath appealed to the people of Uttar Pradesh to vote for BJP if they did not want Uttar Pradesh to reflect the condition of Kerala, West Bengal, and Kashmir governments.

To quote him:

“Beware! If you miss, the labour of these five years will be spoiled. It would not take much time for Uttar Pradesh to become Kashmir, Kerala, and Bengal.”

As he takes a dig at Left-ruled Kerala and Trinamool Congress-ruled West Bengal, where incidentally, TMC has won for the third term with BJP as its latest grand opposition, he praised the “dedication and commitment” of what he called “the double engine government of BJP” in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

He says,

“You have seen everything and heard everything in detail.”  

In his appeal to the people for votes, Adityanath claims that a vote for BJP would translate as “a guarantee of a fear-free life” and would be a symbol of the voters’ “blessing on my efforts of five years.”

In the nearly six-minute-long video, Adityanath asserts that the “rioters who have been restrained are getting impatient” and “the terrorists are repeatedly issuing threats.”  

Reactions to Adityanath’s Tweet 

Adityanath’s tweet did not go unanswered. Kerala’s Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan, tweeted in defense:

“If UP turns into Kerala as Yogi Adityanath fears, it will enjoy the best education, health services, social welfare, living standards and have a harmonious society in which people won’t be murdered in the name of religion and caste. That’s what the people of UP would want.”

He tweeted the same message from his Twitter handle in Hindi too. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor joined the controversy with a sarcastic tweet that adds flame to fire.

Tharoor posted: “UP will turn into Kashmir, Bengal, or Kerala if BJP doesn’t come to power, Yogi Adityanath tells voters. UP should be so lucky!! Kashmir’s beauty, Bengal’s culture, and Kerala’s education would do wonders for the place. UP’s wonderful: pity about its government.” 

Brief Overview of the First Phase of Elections in Question  

Today, 623 candidates fight for 58 assembly seats representing the western belt of Uttar Pradesh, better known as the “Jat-dominant belt.” Seats representing the districts of Muzaffarnagar, Shamli, Hapur, Gautam Buddha Nagar, Baghpat, Meerut, Mathura, Aligarh, Agra, Ghaziabad are the focus of today’s electoral battle.

The dominance of BJP in this western belt has been facing a tough challenge since 2014 from the Samajwadi Party-Rashtriya Lok Dal alliance.

This belt, known for its rich sugarcane and potato production, will equally test the impact of the months’ long farmers’ protest, mainly because the group that leads the farmers’ protest has been making earnest requests to voters to bring an end to the BJP government in UP.

Today will mark the first phase of a seven-phase electoral battle on February 10th, 14th, 20th, 23rd, 27th, March 3rd, and 7th. Vote counting is scheduled for March 10.  

Edited by: Mahi Gupta

Published by: Vishakha Verma