Yogi Adityanath: Tryst with controversy continues

Rising from near-obscurity from within the BJP rank and file to become the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh in 2017, Yogi Adityanath has emerged as the new poster boy of the Saffron party in a few years. His success formula has been fairly straightforward: Hardcore 'Hindutva' ideology combined with a knack for courting controversies.

Since he took charge of the politically crucial state of UP, Adityanath has been hitting headlines with statements like, “Ali vs Bajarang Bali”, “Thonk Do” and "throw out Bangladeshi infiltrators". His recent pronouncement warning that those indulging in 'love jihad' should be ready for their “Ram Naam Satya” journey has raised the hackles of his political detractors and rights activists.

Adityanath has always had a way of triggering political mini-storms. The 48-year-old, who is also the mahant (chief priest) of the famous Gorakhnath Peeth in Gorakhpur, has been known for making communally-charged remarks.

Back in 2007, he was arrested for delivering a provocative speech in his hometown, resulting in communal violence which killed at least ten people. The UP government, however, withdrew the 'hate speech' case soon after Adityanath became the CM on the grounds that the CD containing the speech was tampered with.

Adityanath has only become stronger within the BJP with each passing episode that paints him, and more lately, his government, in a negative light. He also faces opposition from within his own party. Several BJP MLAs have cornered him over the poor state of law and order in UP, corruption and other issues. He was accused of being 'anti-Brahmin' by a senior lawmaker from his party.

After the recent brutal murder and alleged gang rape of a Dalit teen in Hathras district, there was speculation that Adityanath might be replaced. However, even his detractors in the BJP knew that the party High Command would find it hard to replace him.

"After Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he (Adityanath) remains our biggest hope in UP in the next Assembly polls in 2022," a senior BJP leader said.

"In Yogi Adityanath, the supporters of Hindutva have found a politician clad in saffron robes who does not care for niceties... he speaks his mind without fear and without bothering about the consequences," political analyst J P Shukla said. He added that although Adityanath might have been a surprise choice for the post of CM, he has entrenched himself firmly in the position now.

His recent remarks at a Bihar election rally that ‘infiltrators would be thrown out’ was decried by BJP ally and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. But the jibe, with anti-Muslim overtones, has not brought him any kind of opprobrium from his party.

Similarly, the ‘love jihad’ statement was followed up by other BJP-ruled states—Haryana, MP and Karnataka—announcing that they too, like UP, would contemplate a law against the so-called ‘practice’.

However, the fact remains that Adityanath is seen as too much of a Hindu hardliner. A political watcher who did not want to be named said that Adityanath was the "biggest polarising" figure in national politics. Also, there may be limits to how much the BJP can gain by deploying the Yogi’s firepower. For example, in the Assembly polls in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi and Jharkhand conducted in 2018-19, Adityanath addressed dozens of rallies but failed to ensure a win for his party.

That said, few, however, doubt that he will remain a star campaigner for the BJP in the forthcoming Assembly polls in West Bengal, where the BJP has pinned its hopes on the Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register of Citizens to reap electoral dividends.