LUCKNOW: Days after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath courted controversy when he said he would take “revenge” against anti Citizenship Amendment Act protesters, he again kicked up a row when he claimed his government’s crackdown had “silenced” the demonstrators.
In a series of tweets on Friday night, the CM’s office justified the tough police action across the state and sent out a warning to the protesters.
“Every rioter is shocked. Every demonstrator is stunned. Everyone has been silenced after seeing Yogi Adityanath government’s strict actions. Do whatever now, damages will be recovered from anyone who damages public property. Every violent protester will regret now because there is Yogi government in Uttar Pradesh,” the CM’s office tweeted.
“Every rioter is thinking they made a big mistake by challenging Yogi ji’s government after seeing strict actions taken by it against rioters,” the tweet said further.
Reacting to the tweets, Bahujan Samaj Party MP Kunwar Danish Ali said the CM was only stoking the fire by his comments. “He is not discharging his duties with responsibility. He is trying to pour oil on the fire. People who sit in responsible positions should restrain from making such provocative statements,” Ali said.
“Yogi Adityanath is responsible for bringing a bad name to the country globally. This is a democracy and he cannot boast of silencing demonstrators. Under the name of maintaining law and order, he is defending police firing and violation of human rights,” said Jamaat-e-Islami Hind vice president Mohammad Jafar.
Last week, Adityanath had resolved to recover the cost of damage to public and private property from the rioters by attaching their personal properties and auctioning them.
498 persons notified
The government has so far notified 498 persons—82 in Lucknow, 148 in Meerut, 26 in Sambhal, 79 in Rampur, 13 in Ferozabad, 50 in Kanpur, 73 in Muzaffarnagar, eight in Mau and 19 in Bulandshahr —for causing damage to public property during the protests