Yogi Adityanath In UP Vidhan Sabha: When People From 'Akhand Bharat' Go For Haj, They Are Identified As 'Hindu'

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath has said that whenever people from "Akhand Bharat" go for Haj, they are identified as Hindu.

Adityanath was speaking in the state assembly in the ongoing session on the collective cultural pride of 'Akhand Bharat'.

He said that people going for the Haj pilgrimage, those who come from India, or Pakistan or Bangladesh, are not identified as being from that particular country but as being from the Indian subcontinent.

He said "... ya is Akhand Bharat ka jo nagrik hai, koi bhi jata hai, uski pehchaan Bharat, Pakistan ya Bangladesh ke roop mein nahin hoti. Ek Hindu ke roop mein hee uski hoti hai." (Anyone who is a citizen of Akhand Bharat, [when he goes for Haj] he is identified not as an Indian, Pakistani or Bangladeshi, but as a Hindu)

Dharma Sanatan Dharma hai

He said that 'Hindu' here refers to identity while 'dharma' is Sanatan Dharma.

Adityanath mentioned freedom fighter and leader Dr Ram Manohar Lohia and said that politicians who are Lohia's disciples must keep his views on Ram, Krishna and Shankar (Shiva) in mind while taking forward the visionary's legacy.

He said, "It's better we follow those traditional values. Nahin to janata to jawab de hee rahi hai (the public will express its views).

Adityanath also highlighted the importance of Ayodhya in India's cultural identity. "People from across the world congratulated us on the rituals observed at the Ram Janmabhumi in Ayodhya on 5 August, 2020. We were able to carry out these rituals and related work during the spread of coronavirus and related restrictions and protocol," he added.

He referred to the bias and prejudice that some people carry for "Ram naam" even today. He concluded by saying that this makes him wonder what the rakshas during Ram's times would have said or done.