BJP will put an end to one-family rule in Rampur: Yogi

BAREILLY: In a veiled attack on Samajwadi Party lawmaker Mohd Azam Khan, chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Friday said that development in Rampur would no longer remain limited to one particular family or house.

Addressing a Vijay Sankalp rally in Ajitpur area of Rampur to drum up support for party candidate Bharat Bhushan Gupta, who is pitted against SP nominee and Khan’s wife Tazeen Faitma, the CM said, “Rampuri knife makers are known the world over for their craftsmanship. But like a double-edged sword, these knives can be put to use either in self-defense or in hooliganism or crime. Unfortunately, this weapon has been used to oppress the poor for long under the previous regime,” he said in an oblique reference to charges of land grabbing against Khan.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav is also scheduled to address a rally in favour of party candidate Tazeen Fatima on Saturday, the last day of the poll campaign in the city where voting will be held on Monday.

The CM said people in Rampur, especially the poor and farmers, have suffered excesses and their livelihood and land was snatched by the members of one particular family. “Government schemes and funds earmarked for the overall development have been misused and diverted for giving shape to personal projects and aspirations,” he said adding, “But you (people) can now be rest assured that those who brought about this injustice and terrorized the locals would either be in jail or would not dare to come to the city.”

He said that after taking charge in 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid attention to the development of the country and launched schemes that benefited every section of the society without any discrimination. “We did not enquire about the caste or religion of a person and simply took into consideration his/ her economic condition in the selection of beneficiary,” he said adding that the state government was committed to ‘sabka saath- sabka vikas.’

Those who also spoke on the occasion included state finance minister Suresh Khanna, minister of state Mahesh Kumar Gupta and Baldev Singh Aulakh, former MP Jaya Prada, minister Suresh Rana and several other senior party leaders.