New Delhi: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday asserted that law and order in Uttar Pradesh has improved and that there has not been any curfew or riots in the state under his government. Kicking off an election campaign for the upcoming UP urban body elections from Saharanpur, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said that the state was now being identified by its grand festivals and not for the mafia.


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"Earlier daughters were afraid to leave their homes. Today, however, there is a fear-free atmosphere in Uttar Pradesh," Yogi Adtiyanath told the gathering.


Today, the state's identity is festivals, not mafia and disorder, he added.


"No curfew, no danga, UP me sab changa (There are no curfew and riots in Uttar Pradesh now and all is good)," he said. 


Amidst loud applause from locals, CM Yogi also said that Uttar Pradesh is not anyone's property and that extortion will not be allowed.



His remarks came days after gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were gunned down in full media glare amid heavy police presence in Prayagraj.


He also lashed out at the previous governments and said, "Before 2017, the governments here did not have time for anything other than creating riots but today there is no curfew in Uttar Pradesh. Now the Kanwar Yatra is taken out. Earlier, fake cases were lodged against the youth but now no one can do that."
 
Making a fervent appeal to people to support BJP candidates in the next month's urban body polls, Adityanath said that this election is for connecting the third engine to the double-engine government. 


Cautioning the voters against other forces, he said, "We have to decide whether we want casteist governments which were in place before the 2017 period or a government which is dedicated to the welfare of the poor. We all have to decide whether to have a corruption-ridden system or a corruption-free system."


We have to decide whether the youths should have guns in their hands or tablets and smartphones. We have to decide whether there should be the sound of gunfire in the streets or a change in the lives of people, the UP CM added.



He added that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Saharanpur is shining in front of the country and the world with a new aura of development. 


The Uttar Pradesh urban local body elections will be held in two phases on May 4 and May 11. The counting of votes will take place on May 13.