Congress, allies creating anarchy: Adityanath

Gorakhpur: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday accused the Congress and its allies of creating an atmosphere of anarchy and posing a danger to democracy.

Addressing the NDA’s ‘Loktantra Bachao, Arajakta Hatao’ (Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy) foot march here, Adityanath said opposition parties celebrated their own efforts when they won elections but blamed electronic voting machines (EVMs) when they were defeated.

“If they win elections, it is because of their hard work. But when the people reject them because of their own failures, they blame the EVMs. This has become their tendency,” he said.

Adityanath said the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls was not being conducted for the first time in the country, adding that such exercises had taken place in different periods, mostly during Congress governments.

He alleged that the opposition was creating an uproar over the Election Commission’s exercise to remove the names of Bangladeshi infiltrators, Pakistanis and deceased persons from electoral rolls. Adityanath said the inclusion of names of foreign infiltrators in voter lists deprived poor, Dalit and marginalised Indians of their democratic rights.

“The Congress, the INDIA bloc and all their allies should apologise to the people of the country for their actions,” he said, accusing them of creating an atmosphere of anarchy instead of strengthening democracy. He alleged that the opposition was attempting to undermine the credibility of constitutional institutions on which the country’s democratic system rests. Referring to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks on EVMs, Adityanath asked why Congress leader Rahul Gandhi took the oath as a Lok Sabha member after being elected through the same voting system that his party questions.

“If the EVM is so wrong, why does Rahul Gandhi take oath in Parliament after winning an election through the same EVM?” he asked.