Adityanath compares situation in western UP with Kashmir exodus

In what may give the opposition fresh ammunition in the run up to the high-voltage assembly polls, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Yogi Adityanath has raised the issue of alleged exodus of Hindus from Kairana and said that the situation in western Uttar Pradesh was akin to the situation in Kashmir 27 years ago.

"We do not face a threat in eastern UP because there we use the language that people understand and set them straight.When I look at western UP, I feel regret as I feel unsafe. On January 19, 1990, Hindus had to migrate collectively from Kashmir. A massacre took place, the honour of mothers and sisters were openly trampled upon. If we have seen a sight similar to this anywhere, it was either in Bengal or western UP. Kairana and Kandhla are examples," said Adityanath while addressing a rally here yesterday.

"Is Kairana not an issue? Is Kashmir not an issue? If this country's majority, the Hindus, is tortured then is it not an issue. But if a thorn pricks the foot of someone from the minority community, it becomes an issue. This politics is strange," he added.

Adityanath's assertion comes months after BJP MP Hukum Singh claimed that 346 Hindu families had fled Kairana due to the building communal tensions.

The seven-phase assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh are commencing on February 11 and would conclude on March 8.

The results will be declared on March 11.