‘Ayegi toh BJP hi, ayenge toh Yogi hi’, PM urges voters

On Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed that an "unprecedented" "lahar" (wave) has already begun in the BJP's favour and that the battle was mostly within the party over how many more seats it will win than in the last UP elections. "Ayegi to the BJP hi...Ayegi to Yogi hi," he shouted at a rally in Kannauj, his first in the Yadav-dominated region that will vote in the third phase of the UP elections.

The BJP had brought supporters to Kannauj from Etawah, the hometown of SP head Akhilesh Yadav, Auraiyya, and Farrukhabad. Modi's remark was a new nudge to the SP, which has been attempting to square off with the BJP in order to impede the party's effort to return to power in March.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday urged Uttar Pradesh voters to give law and order "top priority," citing examples from Gujarat, where he had led the state government for many years, to create a "riot-free" environment under Yogi Adityanath for a second term. Mr. Modi also exhorted people to "stay united" and not let their votes to be "divided" in the name of jati (caste) and sampradaya in a veiled appeal for communal unity (sect or community).

The Prime Minister backed the restoration of the BJP administration in Uttar Pradesh, as well as Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. "Everyone in Uttar Pradesh and the rest of the country understands that 'ayegi toh BJP hai, ayenge toh Yogi hi,'" Mr. Modi remarked in Kannauj. Mr. Modi told a gathering in the city famed for potatoes and perfume that after the first phase of voting in western Uttar Pradesh, the 2022 Uttar Pradesh election will be about how many more seats the BJP would win than the previous time and build a full majority government.

Mr. Modi spent a lot of time talking about law and order. He reflected on the apparent shift in Gujarat following the BJP's election victory in the western state. According to the PM, while the Congress' leadership in Gujarat, no trader or businessman grew, people did not feel comfortable, and rioting and burning occurred frequently and over every minor matter, followed by curfews.

 “Murders had become common. People were forced to leave entire localities. And after that these empty homes were purchased at cheap prices and the identity of the locality was changed,” Mr. Modi said, implying communal strife.

Gujarat has been trapped in this "vicious circle" for a long time, but things began to shift when the BJP took power and prioritized law and order and the rule of law, he said.

"This is why there have been no major riots in Gujarat in the last two decades," the Prime Minister explained. People in Uttar Pradesh have realized that only the BJP government has the "remedy" for rioters, goons, and rogues, he claimed.

Mr. Modi claimed that the first round of the Assembly election had robbed dynasties of their sleep and dreams by dividing votes through jativad (casteism) and sampradayvad (communalism). “But I am happy that people are voting as one against the mafia vadi and danga vadi ,”Mr. Modi remarked.

Mr. Adityanath was thanked by the Prime Minister for putting an end to rioting in Uttar Pradesh, and he implored voters to make this a "permanent form" and not allow such "activities to flourish" in the state.

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