Omar Rashid 
New Delhi: The Supreme Court may have put a stop to ‘illegal’ demolitions in the country, but that did not stop a BJP candidate in Haryana from showcasing bulldozers at a recent election rally in Jind, where Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath campaigned for him.
Addressing a rally in the Narwana assembly seat in Jind on Sunday (September 22), Adityanath publicised the UP model of tackling crime as he sought votes for the BJP.
The BJP candidate from the constituency, Krishan Bedi, a former minister, had placed at least six bulldozers near the rally’s venue to welcome Adityanath. Local media reported a higher number of bulldozers.
In his speech, Adityanath, who has since 2017 unleashed bulldozers and the full might of controversial laws to demolish the properties of accused persons as well as political opponents, took note of the gesture. He was, however, cautious not to make a direct reference to bulldozers.
Adityanath claimed that since 2017 – when he came to power – not a single riot had taken place in UP.
“Danga karne walo ke liye ye samne upkaran khada kar diye hain Krishna Bedi ne pehli hi [Krishna Bedi has already parked in front of us the equipment for those involved in riots],” said Adityanath, in a veiled reference to the demolition of the property of accused persons using bulldozers.
After the rally, Bedi shared a post on social media showing six bulldozers parked near the main tent of the public meeting.
Adityanath harped about how under his tenure, rioters feared the consequences of their actions.
“The person involved in riots knows that if he engages in such an act, the earnings acquired by seven generations of his family would be confiscated and be distributed among the poor,” said Adityanath.
Krishan Bedi’s rally showed that the BJP prefers to associate Adityanath with the bulldozer. Photo: Krishan Bedi’s Facebook page.
Demolitions, in particular the imagery of bulldozers, have dominated the political discourse in UP over the last few years under Adityanath. Although after the apex court’s stay on demolitions in the country the Adityanath government has toned down its references to bulldozers, the rally in Haryana showed that the BJP prefers to associate Adityanath with the bulldozer.
Addressing another rally in Karnal, Adityanath said that rioters in UP had either left the state or “left for their Ram Naam yatra”, a reference to the final journey before cremation.
Over three rallies in Haryana, Adityanath raised the subjects of the Ram Mandir, violence against Hindus in Bangladesh and the Congress’s past record vis-a-vis Dalits to pitch for Hindu unity.
If the Ram Mandir could not be built in Ayodhya immediately after independence, the parties that wore the cloak of “secularism” were responsible for it, said Adityanath in Jind.
He also accused the Congress of trying to divide Hindu society and make people from different castes fight each other.
Referring to the recent political upheaval in Bangladesh, Adityanath alleged that the Congress “did not utter a single word for the Hindus who were killed” and the temples that were demolished in the neighbouring country.
“Those Hindus facing oppression in Bangladesh, 90% of them are Dalit … Hindus. But the Congress is worried about its vote bank and not Hindus,” said Adityanath in a speech laced with communalism.
“I had told you, that if you are divided, you will be slaughtered. If you stay united, you will be good,” said Adityanath, pitching for unity between Hindu castes.
In Karnal, Adityanath claimed that a “foreign invader” had demolished a temple dedicated to Lord Ram in Ayodhya 500 years ago, even though there is no archaeological or historical evidence of that event.
Adityanath equated the Congress to the once “dilapidated structure” of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya before it was torn down by politically mobilised saffron extremists in 1992. He asked voters to bring the Congress down in a similar fashion.