Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday urged people to stay united for a strong nation, saying the mistakes in Bangladesh should not happen in India.
Addressing a public meeting in Agra on Monday, Adityanath said: “Behno aur bhaiyon, rashtra se badh kar kuch nahin ho sakta. Aur rashtra tab sashakt hoga jab hum ek rahenge, nek rahenge. Batenge to katenge (Sisters and brothers, nothing is bigger than the nation. And the nation will be strong when we are united and sincerely united. We will disintigrate if we are divided).”
Adityanath was speaking after unveiling a statue of Durgadas Rathore, a commander in the army of erstwhile Jodhpur province’s king Maharaja Jaswant Singh who took on Mughal ruler Aurangzeb in the 17th century.
The BJP uses the name of Aurangzeb to attack the Opposition parties. The BJP claims that Aurangzeb had razed portions of the Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi and the Krishna Janmasthan temple in Mathura and built the Gyanvapi and Shahi Idgah mosques instead, respectively.
Without mentioning the name of the Mughal emperor, Adityanath said: “It is good that we unveiled the statue of Durgadas Rathore on the occasion of Krishna Janmashtami.”
Later in a post on X, Adityanath said: “In a country where great heroes like Durgadas Rathore are born, no foreign invader can harm that country in any way. Humble tribute to him!”
The country celebrated Janmashtami on Monday. On Sunday, Adityanath was in Mathura, considered the birthplace of Lord Krishna.
In Agra, the chief minister also said: “Are you watching Bangladesh? We shouldn’t commit that mistake here.”
There were reports in Indian media that Hindus were under attack in Bangladesh during the uprising against the erstwhile Sheikh Hasina government.
Adityanath repeated: “We will suffer if we are divided. We would be good when we are united. We will be safe. We have to work to realise our vision of a developed India.”
Congress leader Dwijendra Tripathi said: “BJP leaders are known for dividing the society. For this, they want to change the secular constitution and inclusive culture of India. They twist everything.
“Their slogan of unity means provoking one Indian community against the other. This is their political policy.”