Yogi Adityanath was speaking at a session of state working committee meeting of BJP Yuva Morcha (File)
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Friday charged that the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) had "banned" Hindu festivals while they were in power, indirectly accusing them of favouring the Muslim community.
There used to be riots during the previous governments, curfew used to be imposed and people could not celebrate festivals, he said, addressing the concluding session of the state working committee meeting of the BJP Yuva Morcha.
"When there were no riots, the administration used to put such strange conditions that there would be no cracker bursting on Diwali or people would not be able to go on Kanwar Yatra," Mr Adityanath added.
"But for festivals of a particular community ('varg vishesh'), a red carpet used to be laid. Whenever there were Hindu festivals, they were banned," he said.
He also referred to the Ram temple which is under construction. "A grand temple of Lord Shri Ram is being constructed in Ayodhya, and this could only be done by the BJP," the chief minister said.
Shri Krishna Janmashtami was the only festival that was celebrated in prisons and police stations, but the governments of the SP and the BSP banned it too, he said.
"When we came to power, the first festival was Kanwar Yatra, and officials warned that there could be riots as people from six states come for it," Mr Adityanath stated.
"I replied that I have come to stop the riots, you need not worry about this, the responsibility of protecting 24 crore people of the state is on us and Kanwar Yatra will take place. We said we will not stop Kanwar Yatra. All festivals will be celebrated," he added.
The chief minister alleged that when the SP and the BSP got their chances to govern the state, they only filled their coffers and left the state in the lurch.
"In 15 years, these people changed the direction of UP, changed its fortunes and ended its identity. But within just four and a half years, the BJP-led government has worked to bring the glory of UP back," he added.
Recently, Mr Adityanath had said that earlier, rations meant for the poor used to go people who say "abba jaan", an indirect jibe at the SP and the Muslim community.
The chief minister also asked the members of the youth wing of the party to make all-out preparations to connect with the six crore young people in the state.
He appreciated the role played by the Yuva Morcha workers during the COVID-19 pandemic and other calamities.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)