IndiaTomorrow.net,
Washington, March 21: The appointment of BJP parliamentarian Adityanath Yogi, who is known for his provocative anti-Muslim speeches, as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh is not being appreciated, not only by people in the country but also by the Indians living abroad. A section of Indian diaspora in the United States has expressed deep disappointment over Yogi’s ascent to the post of UP CM.
“It is a recipe for disaster for the state of Uttar Pradesh however; it is part of a carefully calibrated plan by the BJP to further sow the seeds of polarization and conflict to profit from especially looking at the upcoming Parliamentary election. The real face of the RSS will be on full display soon,” said George Abraham, Chairman of the Indian National Overseas Congress, USA.
Yogi took oath of chief minister on 19 March, about a week after the BJP got massive victory in the state assembly polls – the party won 312 seats alone in the 403-Member Assembly. Far more than the 2014 Lok Sabha campaigns, the UP Assembly election campaigns of BJP were more polarized – thanks to such remarks from the top leadership of the party including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“We are indeed shocked to see that this firebrand Yogi Adityanath whose virulent public pronouncements often borders outright contempt for the minorities in India is anointed by the Narendra Modi-Amit Shah combine as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, the largest state in India” said Harbachan Singh, the Secretary-General of INOC.
On various social and political issues, Yogi has held extreme Hindutva viewpoint. He has been advocating for India being declared a Hindu Rashtra. He supports construction of a Ram temple on the place where Babri Masjid once stood in Ayodhya.
INOC has urged the NRIs in America “to strongly express their disapproval of the selection of a Hindutva extremist to be the leader of the most important state in India.”
“Opposing Trumpism in America while remaining silent on the fundamentalist ascendance in India would tantamount to nothing less than duplicity”, it said in a statement.
