Yogi's remarks on Mathura, Kashi: "CM bound by Constitution, shouldn't make such statements," says Akhilesh Yadav

Feb 08, 2024

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], February 8 : Following Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's remarks on Mathura and Kashi, which are considered significant pilgrimage sites for Hindus, Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Akhilesh Yadav said on Thursday that the CM is bound by the Constitution and he should refrain from making such remarks.
CM Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday said in the state assembly that in the 'Mahabharata', Krishna asked for five villages, but today the Hindu society is only asking for the three centres of their faith: Ayodhya, Kashi and Mathura.
Ayodhya is considered to be the birthplace of Lord Rama; Mathura is seen as the birthplace of Lord Krishna; and Kashi, or Varanasi is considered to be the abode of Lord Shiva and Parvati. '
Meanwhile, in response to the CM's remarks, Yadav told reporters, "The CM is bounded with the Constitution. He should not make any such statement which is not as per the oath he took as the CM. It is not yet clear who are the Kauravas and who are the Pandavas... Kauravas were more in number... BJP says it is the largest party in the world... We read in Mahabharat that those who had the biggest army were Kauravas... The victory would be of those who have the God on their side."
"All of us are bound by the Constitution... The Consitution gives us the rights. The government does trickery... Can we snatch anyone's rights? If any court gives any order, does that mean that our rights will be snatched away? The Constitution gives us the right to present ourselves. I hope that the court will do justice in the coming times," he added.
The remarks follows CM Yogi's statement in which he said that in the 'Mahabharata', Krishna asked for five villages, but today the Hindu society is only asking for the three centres of their faith 'Ayodhya, Kashi and Mathura.'
He further mentioned the Krishna Janmabhoomi site in Mathura and the Kashi Vishwanath temple complex in Varanasi are the two other disputed lands that Hindus have been claiming.
"Injustice was done to Ayodhya. When I talk about injustice, we remember something 5 thousand years old... Lord Shri Krishna asked (Duryodhan) for half (of the property), but if that was difficult, then give only five villages. He talked about 5 villages. But the Hindu society and faith here are talking about only three (Ayodhya, Kashi, Mathura). These are the three places that are the centre of our faith," he said.
"Duryodhana wo bhi de na saka, Ashish samaj ke le na saka. Ulte, Hari ko bandhe chala, jo tha asadhya, sadhne chala," the Chief Minister quoted from Dinkar's 'Rashmirathi'. These lines from the poem in translation mean, Duryodhana couldn't even give (those 5 villages) and get blessed. Instead, he sought to tame Hari, which was impossible.
"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," CM Yogi said.
Quoting from Ramdhari Singh Dinkar's 'Rashmirathi', Yogi Aditynath said, "At that time, Krishna had gone to the Kauravas and said, then give us just five villages, keep all the land you have. We will happily eat there."
"Krishna had asked for five villages that time. Krishna had gone for an agreement. He asked for justice, even if it was half. But here, the society and its faith, for hundreds of years, was talking about three, just three," Yogi Adityanath said, referring to the spots at Ayodhya, Mathura and Varanasi.
Speaking on the latest court order that allowed Hindus to pray at one of the sealed cellars, Vyasji ka Tehkhana, at the Gyanvapi site, Yogi Adityanath said, "When our Nandi Baba saw the festival of Ayodhya, he said why should he wait? He broke the barricades in the night. After this, how is our Krishna Kanhaiya going to listen to anyone?"
Adityanath blamed votebank politics for the situation. "When politics kicks in and votes are looked at, dispute begins," he said.
"But when politics starts rising and there is vote politics, then the dispute arises... It was the first time in history that the majority had to plead. When all of this could have happened after independence itself," he added.
Earlier last month, the country witnessed the 'Pran Pratishtha' of Shri Ram Lalla at Ayodhya's historic temple.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is dealing with matters pertaining to Mathura's Krishna Janambhoomi land dispute. Also, matters relating to the Gyanvapi mosque, based in Kashi, is in the hands of the court.