New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday hit out at Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath over his tweet warning UP voters against the state becoming J&K, Kerala or West Bengal. 


Rahul Gandhi said "don’t insult the spirit of India", which is "beautiful in all its colours". Gandhi said there is strength in the country’s union of cultures, diversity, languages, people and states.


“There is strength in our Union. Our Union of Cultures. Our Union of Diversity. Our Union of Languages. Our Union of People. Our Union of States. From Kashmir to Kerala. From Gujarat to West Bengal. India is beautiful in all its colours. Don’t insult the spirit of India,” he tweeted.



Earlier in the day, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor took a dig over Adityanath’s remarks that Uttar Pradesh could turn into a “Kashmir, Kerala or Bengal” if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) does not return to power.


Tharoor said Uttar Pradesh “should be so lucky” as Kashmir’s beauty, Bengal’s culture and Kerala’s education would do wonders for the place.


“UP will turn into Kashmir, Bengal or Kerala if BJP doesn't come to power, @myogiadityanath tells voters. UP should be so lucky!! Kashmir's beauty, Bengal's culture & Kerala's education would do wonders for the place. UP's wonderful: pity about its Govt.,” he wrote on the micro-blogging platform.



Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also reacted to his Uttar Pradesh counterpart’s remarks and said the state “will enjoy the best education, health services, social welfare, living standards and have a harmonious society in which people won’t be murdered in the name of religion and caste”.


“If UP turns into Kerala as Yogi Adityanath fears, it will enjoy the best education, health services, social welfare, living standards and have a harmonious society in which people won't be murdered in the name of religion and caste. That's what the people of UP would want,” Vijayan tweeted.



National Conference leader Omar Abdullah too took a jibe at Adityanath stating “he should be so lucky” as Jammu and Kashmir has “less poverty, better human development indices, less crime & generally better standards of living” than Uttar Pradesh.


“He should be so lucky. J&K has less poverty, better human development indices, less crime & generally better standards of living than U.P. What we lack is good governance over the last 3-4 years but that is a temporary phenomenon,” he tweeted.



The Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister had earlier asked the people to return the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to power or face the possibility of the state turning into a “Kashmir, Kerala or Bengal”.


Adityanath said that he was concerned that rioters, whose activities were curbed by his government, are now feeling uneasy.


“Terrorists are making threats,” he added in a six-minute video message on Twitter.


Reaching out to the voters, he said: “Be alert. If you miss this time, the five-year effort will be washed away. And it will take no time for UP to become Kashmir, Kerala or Bengal.”


“This vote will be your guarantee to a life without fear,” he added.



Electioneering ended earlier this evening for the first phase of assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.


58 constituencies spread across 11 districts, including Shamli (Prabuddh Nagar), Meerut, Hapur (Panchsheel Nagar), Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat, Ghaziabad, Bulandshahar, Aligarh, Agra, Gautam Buddha Nagar and Mathura, voted in this phase.


Voting for the 403-member Uttar Pradesh Assembly is being held in seven phases.


Polling will be held on 55 assembly seats in the second phase on February 14.


In the third phase on February 20, 59 assembly seats will go to the polls, while 60 seats will go to polls in the fourth phase on February 23.


Polling will be held on 60 assembly seats in the fifth phase on February 27, 57 seats in the sixth phase on March 3 and 54 seats in the seventh phase on March 7.


The counting of votes will be held on March 10.