Voting patterns can’t be termed polarisation, UP election not about Muslims or Hindus: Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah (File Picture)

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on February 21 said that there was no religious polarisation during elections in Uttar Pradesh. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader noted that those who deserved were given benefits in the state, in the last five years, irrespective of caste, community or religion.

“Yes, polarisation is happening. The poor and farmers are being polarised. Many farmers are getting money from the Kisan Kalyan Nidhi Yojana. I can see ‘polarisation’ clearly.” Shah said in an exclusive interview with Rahul Joshi, Group Editor-in-Chief, Network18.

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Shah’s remark comes at a time when 172 of the 403 seats in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly have voted in the first three phases of elections. The remaining seats will vote in four phases till March 7 while the results will be declared on March 10, along with the results of Goa, Uttarakhand, Punjab and Manipur.

“We have left no stone unturned. We have extended benefits to every section of society, irrespective of caste and religion. Whoever was eligible has received benefits. Under the PM’s initiative, we have given gas to 1.66 crore women in UP. Around 2.62 lakh families did not have proper toilets. Can you imagine that? Today, women don’t have to defecate in the open and they are happy. Around 40 lakh women have benefitted from the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana,” he said.

The ruling BJP faces a keen challenge from Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party (SP) in Uttar Pradesh. In the last assembly polls, the BJP had secured a win with a three-fourth majority, with firebrand leader Yogi Adityanath being later announced as the chief minister. The SP government could win 47 seats while the Congress party won only seven seats.

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Shah said that UP elections were not about Muslims, Yadavs or Hindus and that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath may have been referring to voting percentages in his “80-20” statement. Adityanath had said in an earlier interview that 80 referred to people who wanted a safe and corruption-free Uttar Pradesh and had a positive attitude towards the state’s development, while the 20 were those who preferred lawlessness to carry on with “their illegal activities”.

“I don’t think this election is about Muslims or Yadavs or Hindus. Yogi ji may have spoken about vote percentages but not about Muslims vs Hindus,” Shah said.