Anti-Romeo squad was formed for people like Azam Khan, says Yogi Adityanath

SAMBHAL/HARDOI: Resuming campaigning after 72-hour poll panel ban, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Friday attacked Azam Khan over the latter's "underwear" jibe, saying his government constituted anti-Romeo squads for people like the SP leader.  "Our government has constituted anti-Romeo squad for persons like Azam," he said addressing a gathering in Hardoi. In his earlier rally at Sambhal, the chief minister without taking the name of Khan said, "A 'jeev' (human being) of SP lives in Rampur... What kind of language he used for Baba Saheb Bhimrao Ambedkar... Today Mayawati ji is seeking votes for those who had disrespected Baba saheb... What kind of language he uses against mothers and daughters?" Adityanath also claimed that the Congress and the SP-BSP-RLD alliance will get zero seats in the first two phases of general elections held so far in the state. Addressing an election meeting at Kaila Devi area here, he said, "The BJP has got maximum votes in the first two phases of polling on 16 seats and the Congress and the SP-BSP have been reduced to zero seats." "I am coming to you after 'sadhana' (worship) of Bajrang Bali for three days... I also had a darshan of Kaila Devi," the CM said, adding he never seeks votes in the name of religion. "Remember the Congress government when the then prime minister Manmohan Singh had said that Muslims had the first right over the country's resources while Mayawati in a rally in Saharanpur asked Muslims to unite and vote for the BSP-SP alliance... I have never sought votes in the name of caste or religion," he said. Taking on the Samajwadi Party candidate from Sambhal Shafiq-ur-Rehman Burq, the priest-turned-politician said,  "What can be said about SP... It fielded a candidate in Sambhal who claims himself to be the descendant of Babar, hesitates in garlanding the statue of Baba Saheb and does not recite Vande Matram." He asked the people whether they wanted to hand over the reins of the country to those who are anti-development, anti-youth, traitors, terrorists and opposed to the believers of Bajrang Bali (another name for Lord Hanuman). Stating that he took up development work in the state without discriminating on the basis of religion unlike the previous governments, the BJP leader said regimes who practised such discrimination are disrespecting democracy. "Earlier governments used to discriminate... funds were given to graveyards and not to cremation grounds... electricity was supplied to Deva Sharif and not to Mahadeva .. this was discrimination," he added.