Labelling members of the Congress as “impersonators”, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath stated on Sunday that whereas previously the party denied the existence of Lord Ram, it has altered its position following the construction of the grand Ram temple in Ayodhya after a 500-year wait and now it asserts that Ram belongs to everyone.

The Uttar Pradesh chief minister made the remark while addressing the Vijay Sankalp rally at NIT Srinagar in Garhwal Lok Sabha constituency.

He questioned, “Congress used to say that Muslims have the first right over the country’s resources, then why was the partition done in 1947 in the first place? Why didn’t anyone ask this question to the Congress?”

During the event, Chief Minister Yogi got engaged in an emotional conversation with the people from his birthplace. He sought public support for Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Anil Baluni. He also assured that UP was going to hand over all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the upcoming general elections.

Chief Minister Yogi expressed his pleasure over the opportunity to engage in dialogue in the Lok Sabha constituency of his birthplace. He remarked: “Whenever I come to Uttarakhand, it is an opportunity for conversations, self-realisation and spiritual experiences. The essence of Lord Shiva resides in every particle here, which is why it is called Devbhoomi (Land of the Gods). The holy rivers that flow from here bring prosperity to Uttar Pradesh as well.”

The chief minister further said that sometimes, some people misunderstand the zero tolerance policy of the UP government, fearing that criminals might run away to Uttarakhand. He assured that he will not leave the mafia and criminals in a position to even think of crossing the border of Uttar Pradesh.

Contrasting Congress rule with that of the BJP under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Yogi said that while the former spent the money from temples on religious conversions and constructing madrasas, the latter worked for the restoration and redevelopment of those temples under government protection. The ongoing projects in Badrinath and Kedarnath are examples of this, he stated.

He said the new Ayodhya was showcasing the glimpse of Tretayug. He informed the gathering that one and a half to two lakh people were visiting Ayodhya every day.

“There is full security and facilities for the devotees. We say we won’t provoke, but we won’t also spare those who harass businessmen or daughters. Some people think they will commit a crime and go to jail, but we will send them to hell before they reach jail,” he added.

The UP chief minister said that Uttarakhand has given the country its first and second chiefs of defence staff (CDS). “This is General Bipin Rawat’s birthplace. We are confident that under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership, the borders are secure. During the Congress era, 150 districts of the country were severely affected by Naxalism. Now, only three to four districts are affected,” Yogi asserted.

“Grant Prime Minister Modi a third term, and Naxalism will be eradicated once and for all. Terrorism has ceased in Kashmir. Just four days ago, during an election rally, it was evident that people in Jammu and Kashmir also have faith in Modi’s assurance regarding the democratic mainstream,” Yogi elaborated.

Chief Minister Yogi said that he had the opportunity to be a Member of Parliament from Gorakhpur five times since 1998. “It was saddening to see the 10-year tenure of Congress as MP. They didn’t have any national agenda. Women, youth, the poor, and farmers were not part of their agenda. Their agenda was selfish and divisive, but in the past ten years, we have seen a changing India,” Yogi said.

Highlighting the improved connectivity under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership, Yogi said that train facility was made available from Dehradun-Rishikesh to Karnaprayag via Srinagar. “Connectivity in the mountains was very difficult before. Previously, it used to take 12-12 hours to travel to Badrinath-Kedarnath. Today, one can reach Kedarnath-Badrinath by helicopter in just half an hour. Kedarnath Dham has again regained the glory it had before 2013,” he said.

“I have spent my childhood here. I have seen that one had to go down two-three kilometres to fetch water. Today, every household has a tap connection. Congress people could not even provide kerosene. Since Uttarakhand was formed, the state has made progress through the Char Dham pilgrimage,” Yogi added.

Drawing a parallel with the previous government, the UP chief minister said that Congress provided only one AIIMS in 60 years, whereas during Atal ji’s time, six were built and during Modi ji’s time, 15 more were added. He said that Uttarakhand was moving in the right direction under the leadership of the double-engine government. “The blessings of the deities in Devbhoomi will go to the positive energies, not to the negative ones,” he added.

Chief Minister Yogi said that on Sunday morning Prime Minister Modi had released BJP’s ‘Lok Sankalp Patra’ which aims to realise the vision of a developed India and propel the self-reliant India forward.

“The foundation of this vision is the youth, women, farmers, and the poor. The BJP has released its ‘Lok Sankalp Patra’ to build such an India with the concept that India will establish itself as the world’s greatest power by 2047,” he added.

Chief Minister Yogi asked all BJP workers to read the ‘Lok Sankalp Patra’ and disseminate it among the people.

In the public meeting, BJP’s Uttarakhand unit president Mahendra Bhatt, MP Tirath Singh Rawat, Uttarakhand’s minister Dr Dhan Singh Rawat, Subodh Uniyal, BJP candidate from Garhwal Anil Baluni, MLA Rajkumar, Bharat Chaudhary, Vinod Kandari, Renu Visht and others were present.