CM Yogi responds to Shivpal Yadav’s remark about Azam Khan, accusing the SP of wanting to make him home minister and of triggering riots if it returns to power.
Speaking at a Partition Horrors Remembrance Day event in Lucknow on Friday, Yogi Adityanath said SP leaders were now defending a person after whom a university was built, alleging that he was responsible for India’s Partition and Independence-related events.
Without naming Azam Khan, Yogi said, “They are saying that if we come to power, we will make him home minister. They want to trigger riots again.”
He also alleged that the person had arranged for rioters from Muzaffarnagar and Saharanpur to be brought to the then chief minister’s residence and honoured.
Yogi said, “Look at the shameful thinking of these people. They are making such arguments in support of someone who got the rioters of Muzaffarnagar and Saharanpur honoured at the then CM’s residence.”
Yogi’s remarks came two days after Shivpal Yadav met Azam Khan, who is lodged in Rampur jail, and said that the SP would make him home minister if it formed the government and would avenge all the alleged injustices against him.
Earlier on Friday, the BJP organised a silent march in Lucknow. Yogi, wearing a mask, participated in the half-kilometre march before addressing the programme at Lok Bhawan.
Key points from CM Yogi’s speech
Yogi also targeted Congress, accusing it of betraying the country. He said Congress leaders remained silent in 1947 and wanted to gain power by any means. He alleged that the party’s intentions remain unchanged even today.
He said Sanatanis, Sindhis and Punjabis were driven away from the places where they were born during Partition, while land that Pakistan had not even asked for was handed over to it.
In Lucknow’s Hazratganj, the BJP took out a march from the Sardar Patel statue to Lok Bhawan, with CM Yogi Adityanath also participating.
1. ‘The Sanatan nation was divided for the sake of power’
CM Yogi said the entire country was observing Partition Horrors Remembrance Day, calling it one of the darkest chapters in the history of humanity.
He said crores of Hindus were forced to leave their own motherland and birthplace, while lakhs of Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs and Jains were massacred, with no one listening to their suffering.
Yogi said the lust for power had reached such a level that a Sanatan nation was divided.
He added that the day should also encourage people to learn from those dark chapters of history, as merely remembering the tragedy would not solve the problem.
He questioned why the crisis occurred, who was responsible for it, how many perpetrators were punished, and how long India would continue to pay the price for Partition.
CM Yogi also visited an exhibition showcasing the horrors of Partition.
2. ‘Hindus were massacred in Bangladesh, but these parties remained silent’
Yogi said the questions surrounding Partition still remain before the country today. He said history should not be treated merely as a subject to study for exams, but as an opportunity to take pride in India’s glorious past and learn from and correct past mistakes.
He said this was the thinking behind Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision to observe Partition Horrors Remembrance Day.
Yogi alleged that those who remained silent in 1947 and were focused only on gaining power continue to follow the same approach even today. He said they have aimed to gain power at the cost of the country.
“You must have seen the massacre of Hindus in Bangladesh, but these parties remained silent even then,” Yogi said. He alleged that they feared speaking out would upset their vote bank.
He further accused such parties of treating power as personal property and a family inheritance for their own interests. According to Yogi, this mindset leads them to betray the country and create chaos and disorder.
CM Yogi paid floral tribute at the Sardar Patel statue and folded his hands in respect.
3. ‘India was enslaved because of internal divisions and caste, regional differences’
CM Yogi said there were two major reasons why India became enslaved: internal differences and divisions based on caste and region.
He said conspiracies continued alongside these divisions, and those behind them succeeded. As a result, the country was enslaved because people could not fight together.
“People thought, ‘The attack is happening to someone else; why should I speak?’ The entire country had to pay the price for this,” Yogi said, adding that even India, which had remained united since ancient times, was eventually divided.
4. ‘Attempts were made to trigger riots in UP over the CAA’
Yogi said he was surprised when Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). He said there was no reason to oppose the legislation, which provided citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians who had been persecuted and forced to leave Afghanistan, Pakistan or Bangladesh and had lived in India for at least five years.
“There was nothing in it about taking away the land of Muslims, Congress or the Samajwadi Party,” he said.
However, he alleged that attempts were made to organise protests and trigger riots at several places in Uttar Pradesh, including Lucknow, Kanpur, Meerut, Bulandshahr, Muzaffarnagar and Saharanpur.
Yogi said it was fortunate that Uttar Pradesh had a “double-engine” government at the time. He questioned why the CAA was being opposed and alleged that the SP and Congress were supporting the protests from behind.
He also called these parties the “real culprits” of the 1947 Partition and said, “If Narendra Modi had been the prime minister at that time, no one could have harmed India.”
Azam had built university in Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar’s name
The CM also referred to the university established by SP leader Azam Khan in the name of Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar.
Azam Khan established Jauhar University in 2005. It was named after renowned freedom fighter Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar, who led several movements against British rule.
Mohammad Ali Jauhar served as president of both the Muslim League and the Congress. After India’s Independence, most members of his family moved to Pakistan.
On 15 July, the Rampur district magistrate ordered the demolition of 38 of the university’s 40 buildings. However, Moradabad Divisional Commissioner Anjaneya Singh’s court stayed the DM’s order. The matter is currently pending before the court.
See 2 pictures-
A foot march was taken from the Sardar Patel statue to Lokbhawan in Hazratganj. During this, CM Yogi was wearing a mask.
CM Yogi watched a short movie on Partition Horrors in the auditorium of Lokbhawan along with his ministers and Mayor Sushma Kharkwal.
