North 24 Parganas (West Bengal) [India], April 27 : Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday urged voters in the state to "break free from anarchy and misrule" of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), asserting that the state has an opportunity to restore its past glory.
Addressing the gathering in North 24 Parganas, CM Yogi said, "This is your opportunity to break free from the anarchy and misrule of TMC, to restore the glory of Bengal."
Referring to the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, he alleged that opposition parties had attempted to stall the project.
"Congress, Samajwadi Party and TMC all tried to stop the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, but the double-engine government came, and today a grand temple of Lord Ram has been built in Ayodhya," he said.
Highlighting governance changes in Uttar Pradesh, the Chief Minister claimed the state had become free from riots, curfews and mafia influence. "Uttar Pradesh has become goon-free, mafia-free. Now there is no curfew or riot in Uttar Pradesh," he said.
Earlier, while campaigning in Hooghly, Yogi Adityanath also criticised Mamata Banerjee and the state government over law and order and communal issues, alleging incidents of "love jihad" and "land jihad" and accusing the ruling party of remaining silent on them.
"Mamata Didi conducts namaz on the streets and hosts Iftar feasts. Before any Hindu festival here, curfews are imposed. Incidents of love jihad and land jihad are occurring. The TMC is silent," Yogi said.
Drawing comparisons with the situation in Uttar Pradesh before 2017, he said hooliganism and riots were earlier widespread but ended after the BJP government came to power.
"Before 2017, the situation in Uttar Pradesh was the same. Hooliganism existed, and the mafia ran a parallel government. Land jihad was prevalent. Before the festival, riots would erupt. In 2017, a double-engine government came to power in Uttar Pradesh. Hooliganism ended, curfews ended, riots ended. Love jihad and land jihad have been completely banned. We will not allow cows to be slaughtered. No one will slaughter cows there, and if they do, they will suffer," he said.
"No mafia can threaten any businessman. If they do, Uttar Pradesh's bulldozers will crush their bones," the chief minister added.
The campaigning for the second and final phase of the assembly elections in Bengal will end today as 142 constituencies will go to the polls in the second phase on April 29. The counting of votes will take place on May 4.
The state has recorded a massive 93.2% voter turnout in the first phase of the elections, a record-breaking figure that has both the TMC and the BJP claiming a decisive lead.