Bihar election rally: Yogi Adityanath tears into Congress-RJD over burqa row

Danapur: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday lambasted the RJD-Congress combine in Bihar for opposing the Election Commission's order on the identification of women voters who turn up at polling booths in a burqa, claiming that the opposition parties are indulging in mischief by raising a controversy over the issue.

The commission had said anganwadi workers would be deployed at all polling booths for verifying the identity of burqa-clad women.

The guidelines of the commission are very clear about how identity is verified inside a polling station and will be strictly followed, it said.

"Bihar under the NDA rule is looking forward to continuing its journey towards progress. At such a time, the Congress-RJD is indulging in mischief by raising a controversy over burqas," Yogi alleged.

The senior BJP leader was addressing a rally in Danapur on the outskirts of Patna, organised in support of party candidate Ram Kripal Yadav, a former Union minister, who filed his nomination papers.

"Should fake voters be allowed to vote? The Congress and RJD want this to happen. A reason why they are making a big fuss over burqas. They have also been opposed to electronic voting machines (EVMs) because they want to restore the old system of ballot papers, which facilitated booth capture by their henchmen," Yogi alleged.

He also underscored the cultural affinity between Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, and said that "after the construction of a grand temple of Lord Ram at Ayodhya, the birthplace of Goddess Sita in Sitamarhi is all set for a facelift. We are also working on improving the connectivity between the two places".

The second-term chief minister, who is known as "bulldozer baba" for his tough stance against lawbreakers in Uttar Pradesh, called the mafia in his state "partners" of the RJD, and promised that under the NDA rule, "they will meet the same fate in Bihar".

He also slammed the RJD for "sitting in the lap of Congress", despite its founding president Lalu Prasad having cut his political teeth under legendary revolutionary leader Jayaprakash Narayan (JP), whose revolt ahead of the Emergency had galvanised the public, resulting in Indira Gandhi being voted out of power.

Yogi also alleged that the Samajwadi Party, his principal opponent in Uttar Pradesh, and a constituent of the INDIA bloc to which the Congress and the RJD also belong, had been similarly indifferent to the legacy of "JP".

"A hospital built at the birthplace of JP, named after him, had been in a state of disrepair until we came to power. Now it has been given a makeover," said Yogi.

The UP chief minister is in Bihar on a day-long tour. He is scheduled to address a rally in Saharsa later in the day.