YOGI: CHAURI CHAURA GAVE NEW DIRECTION TO FREEDOM STRUGGLE
LUCKNOW : Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday said the Chauri Chaura incident gave a new direction to the country’s freedom struggle.
“On February 4, 1922 an invaluable struggle was launched at Chauri Chaura for freedom of the country. Three freedom fighters were killed in police firing during the fight between locals and police. The British government had lodged cases against 228 people and 224 of them were punished. Out of those punished, 19 got capital punishment, 14 life imprisonment, 19 were given eight years imprisonment, 97 were sentenced to 5 years imprisonment and 20 were given three years imprisonment,” the chief minister said.
He was speaking at Chauri Charua town, 26 km from Gorakhpur, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated the Chauri Chaura centenary celebrations.
Yogi said the Chauri Chaura programme was being organised at all freedom fighters and martyrs’ memorial sites across the state to pay tribute to them as well as soldiers who laid down their life in war.
Round the year programmes will be organised at the memorials and painting, essay writing and debates will be held in educational institutions. The state government will organise a book fair and promote research on freedom struggle, he said.
Yogi said under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, schemes like ‘Swadeshi, Swalamban and Swachhta’ mission had been launched across the state. The cleanliness mission has checked spread of encephalitis in east UP.
Governor Anandiben Patel, as the chairperson of the organising committee, prepared the programmes that are being organised to mark the Chauri Chaura centenary celebrations, Yogi said.
Earlier, Yogi paid floral tributes at the Chauri Chaura martyrs’ memorial. He also felicitated family members of the people who participated in the freedom struggle and Chauri Chaura incident. He distributed tricycles among the physicallychallenged.
Social welfare minister Ramapati Shastri, minister of state for tourism Neelkanth Tiwari, MP Kamlesh Paswan and MLA Sangeeta Yadav also expressed their views on the occasion.