In a bold assertion made in the Uttar Pradesh State Assembly, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath likened Shri Krishna’s ‘peace’ offer to the Kauravas in Mahabharata to the demands of Hindus to reclaim three holy sites, namely Ayodhya, Mathura, and Kashi. While Ayodhya has been handed over to Hindus by a Supreme Court order and a grand Ram Mandir has been built, Muslims still occupy the Hindu holy shrines of Gyanvapi in Kashi and Krishna Janmabhoomi in Mathura.
UP CM Yogi drew this parallel while addressing the state assembly during the ongoing budget session. During his address, CM Yogi recalled the Mahabhartha incident where Shri Krishna asked the Kauravas to give just 5 villages to the Pandavas, which was declined by Kauravas-led by Duryadhana.
Citing the Mahabharata episode, CM Yogi argued that just like Pandavas demanded only 5 villages, Hindu society only demanded three special places. He explained that they are special places because they are places of incarnation of the Hindu deities or sites of great reverence for Hindus. He added that disputes arise because of vote bank politics.
The CM said in the assembly, ‘Ayodhya faced injustice… Pandavas too faced injustice. At that time, Krishna went to the Kauravas and sought only five villages. Keep the rest with yourself. Pandavas were ready to be happy with just five villages, but Duryodhan didn’t agree to that. Instead, they tried to imprison Lord Krishna. This is what happened with Ayodhya, Kashi, Mathura…Krishna wanted five villages and the Hindu society has been seeking only three centres — the centres of our faith.’
Yogi Adityanath said that three sites of Ayodhya, Mathura and Kashi are not ordinary places, and they are very significant for the believes of Hindus. “These three centres are very special to the faith. There is a determination and when politics gets involved in it, it creates division,” Adityanath said.
We are asking only three places, there is no demand for the other places, he said.
#WATCH | Lucknow | In Uttar Pradesh Assembly, CM Yogi Adityanath says, "…Ayodhya city was brought within the purview of prohibitions and curfew by the previous governments. For centuries, Ayodhya was cursed with ugly intentions. It faced a planned disdain. Such treatment to… pic.twitter.com/Bx7Km7QlkV
— ANI (@ANI) February 7, 2024
Notably, while there are around 40,000 Hindu temples demolished by Islamists to build mosques, the three sites at Ayodhya, Madhura and Kashi are the most important ones. Consequently, there is a feeling among some people that if Muslims give the Mathura and Kashi sites to Hindus, there will be no demands for other thousands of sites, due to their relatively lower importance.
Just a few days back, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Tirtha Kshetra treasurer Govind Dev Giri Maharaj said that the Hindu community will forget issues related to all other temples destroyed by Islamist invaders if Kashi and Mathura are handed over peacefully to Hindus by the Muslim side. Now, UP CM Yogi Adityanath is also making a similar demand.
We fulfilled our vow, Mandir wahi banaya, says UP CM
CM Yogi reiterated that the vow was intact and has been fulfilled as “Mandir wahi Banaya hai”, Mandir has been built at the site which Hindus believe is the birthplace of Shri Ram.
He said, “Everyone was satisfied with Ayodhya that whatever has happened has happened for the good. It was an unforgettable moment and everyone was feeling proud. Because after a long struggle of 500 years, a solution was found with consensus and today the construction of the grand temple of Ramlala was not only completed but Ramlala was established there. This was the first incident in the world where the Lord himself had to gather evidence for his own existence but the dignity of Ram inspires us to patience. We were happy that we kept our promise and built the Mandir there itself. We demonstrate on what we speak and full the resolution.”
He also highlighted the initiatives of his state government in Ayodhya including the annual festive event of Deepotsav and the all-round development of the city as a spiritual tourist place.
CM Yogi also recalled that critics were averse to Ayodhya. He stressed that the dispute was restricted to a particular place not to the entire city which didn’t hinder its development.
During his address, CM Yogi noted that Injustice was meted out with holy cities like Ayodhya, Kashi, and Mathura. He added that the Ayodhya city was prone to curfew in previous governments.
In a scathing attack on the opposition, CM stressed, “…Ayodhya city was brought within the purview of prohibitions and curfew by the previous governments. For centuries, Ayodhya was cursed with ugly intentions. It faced a planned disdain. Such treatment of public sentiments was perhaps never seen anywhere else. Ayodhya faced injustice. When I speak about injustice, we recall the 5000-year-old thing. Injustice was done even to the Pandavas at that time…That had happened with Ayodhya, Kashi, and Mathura…”, during which he drew the parallels with the current times and Mahabharata.
He also pointed out the earlier myths of the incumbent CM losing elections if they visit places like Noida and Bijnor. He explained that when life itself is not eternal, how can any government be eternal?
In his address, the UP CM also slammed the opposition stating that Public faith was insulted in the country. He added that the opposition didn’t say anything on a special and happy occasion like the construction of Ram Mandir rather it always tried to divert people’s attention. CM Yogi further emphasised that the construction of the Ram Mandir should have begun in 1947 soon after India attained Independence.
