Chandigarh: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday said he was surprised to hear a 'Maulvi' (Muslim cleric) in Jammu greeting him with "Ram Ram", and termed it an "impact of the abrogation of Article 370".
Addressing an election rally in Haryana's Faridabad, he said he visited Jammu and Kashmir for two days this week for election campaign and recounted meeting the cleric.
"It was raining in Jammu and I went inside the airport... as I went in, I heard a man say 'Sahab Ram Ram'...the person again repeated 'Yogi Sahab Ram Ram' which caught my attention.
"I found out he was a Maulvi. I was surprised to hear Ram Ram from a Maulvi," he told the gathering in Faridabad.
"Toh mujhe lag gaya ye dhara 370 samapt hone ka prabhav hai (I felt this was an impact of the abrogation of Article 370," he said.
He went on to say, "Jo log Bharat ko koste the, Bharat ki samprabhoota ko chunauti dete the, aaj unke muh se Ram Ram shabd nikal raha hai. Aur yad rakhna Bharat mazboot hoga, Bajpa mazboot hogi, ek din Hare Rama Hare Krishna gatey huye Bharat ki sadkon pe dikhayi denge.
(Those who once used to abuse India and challenge its sovereignty are now saying 'Ram Ram'. Remember, India will become stronger, the BJP will become stronger. One day, they will be seen chanting Hare Rama Hare Krishna on the streets of the country)." He said the 500-year-long wait for a Ram temple was over with the consecration of the idol of the deity at the magnificent temple in Ayodhya this year.
Thousands of Hindus made sacrifices to see a grand temple built in Ayodhya, he said.
"During the times of the Mughals and the British, one could not have expected that justice could be done with Hindus. But in 1947, when India gained independence, the Ram temple in Ayodhya should have been immediately built. There was no dispute," Adityanath said.
But the Congress government got the dispute created, he said.
The problem the Congress could not solve in 65 years was addressed within five years of Modi government coming to power, he said.
"That is why I say the Congress is the name of the problem. All the problems of this country have been given by the Congress," he said, targeting the party over terrorism, corruption, nepotism and Naxalism.
The BJP is the solution, he said.
Highlighting the improvement in law and order in Uttar Pradesh during his government, he asked people if they heard of any riot taking place during the past seven-and-a-half years of the BJP rule in the state.
"Dangai ya toh jail mein hain ya jahannum ki yatra pe ja chuke hai (Rioters are either in jail or have been killed)," he said.
"The BJP means a guarantee of security. The BJP means a guarantee of good governance, employment and development under Modiji's leadership," he said.
The Uttar Pradesh chief minister said the double-engine government executed various projects in Haryana including infrastructure, metro and highways, and asked people to bring back the BJP in the state for accelerated development.
"The Congress, INLD, AAP will not want development to take place because if it happens their shops will be shut and their divisive politics will end," he said.
Haryana goes to polls on October 5 and results will be declared on October 8.