Launching a frontal attack on the previous Samajwadi Party government in the state, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that development of a single family used to be the only criterion of development for the then government.
“The previous regime was running without any agenda with dynastic politics and protection to criminals was the order of the day,” Yogi said while speaking at the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Rs 92 crore Maa Shakumbhari University in Saharanpur in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday.
Without mincing words, the chief minister said that during the previous government, people had to migrate due to frequent riots and anarchical rule, daughters could not go to school fearing criminals and the state, which was leading at the time of Independence, lagged behind and got tagged as a ‘BIMARU’ state.
Lashing out at Samajwadi Party and its leader Akhilesh Yadav, Yogi said that it was for everyone to see how Uttar Pradesh had progressed in the last four and a half years.
“Corruption was so rampant that the previous governments used to make money in the name of development. In the previous government, our faith was under attack. In the months of Sawan, the government used to prohibit taking out of Kanwar yatra. Rioters of Muzaffarnagar were honoured at the then chief minister's residence in Lucknow. Shops owned by Sikhs in Saharanpur were also set on fire by the rioters."
“In 2017, as soon as the Bharatiya Janata Party government replaced the previous regime, Kanwar yatra was taken out with great enthusiasm and since then, the state has not seen a single riot in the state. Deepawali, Holi and all festivals are now being celebrated without fear,” the chief minister added.
“Besides, development has been given impetus in western Uttar Pradesh. Before 2017, it used to take seven to eight hours to reach Delhi from Saharanpur. But now after the construction of the highway, Delhi can be reached in only two hours. Payment of sugarcane is being made to the farmers in a time bound manner. In our government of four and a half years, payment to the tune of Rs 1.44 lakh crore has been made to cane farmers. Sugar mills are being expanded, expressways, air connectivity, universities, roads, medical colleges and other development works are taking place in a seamless manner," Yogi said.
The new Shakumbhari University will have affiliation of about 200 colleges and the degree of the pass-outs will have the photo of Maa Shakumbhari. The academic session in this university will start from 2022.