In Lord Ram, the BJP sees victory. It had raked up the issue of Ram during the UP assembly polls and scored a sweeping victory. Now it seems BJP is again banking on Ram to win the upcoming municipal polls, slated to be held from November 22. Sixteen corporations and 653 municipal wards go to polls. A majority in these polls could give the BJP a positive thrust during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
“These municipal polls are important because the BJP has a government in the state and if we win these corporations then development projects could be expedited very easily because at both the places we have our government,” said BJP spokesperson Manoj Mishra. “And winning these polls will give the party extra political mileage,” he added.
The polls are also being seen as a litmus test of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's popularity. Adityanath kicked off the poll campaign from the sacred city of Ayodhya, which is going to polls for the first time. Ayodhya was constituted as a municipal corporation by the Yogi government.
At Ayodhya, the priest-turned-politician Yogi did not hesitate in openly playing the religious card while linking it with the issue of development of the city. He made it clear that not only in Ayodhya, but in other cities, too, the subjects of Hindutva and Ayodhya temple will be raised freely. As he addressed the crowd, they responded with one demand: “Yogiji ek kaam karo, mandir ka nirman karo [Please do one thing, build the temple].”
In his address, Yogi said: “Whenever I come to Ayodhya, the visits give a shock to BSP and SP.” By attacking these political parties he said that they had not done anything for the development of this sacred city.
Earlier during Diwali, Yogi had left no stone unturned to ensure Ayodhya, believed to be the birthplace of Lord Ram, had a grand celebration. He had said: "Ayodhya gave Diwali to the world. It taught us humanity", adding that projects worth Rs 133 crore had been launched to boost state tourism. The grand plan for Ayodhya also includes a 100-metre tall Ram statue in the holy city to promote tourism.
-with inputs from agencies
