UP CM Yogi Adityanath to hold chaupals and dine at houses of Dalits

Party insiders say it is a part of BJP's 'gram swaraj abhiyaan' that was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on BR Ambedkar's birth anniversary earlier this month.

Picture credit: UP CM Yogi Adityanath Twitter handle

New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath on Monday will become the first BJP chief minister to have a meal at a Dalit family’s residence. The chief minister is currently touring various districts of the state to observe how effectively government schemes have been implemented on ground. Reports say Yogi will spend the night at a high school in Pratapgarh and prior to that will dine at a house of a backward Dalit family. Food preparations have already begun in the house of the host Dayaram Saroj. Party insiders say it is a part of BJP's 'gram swaraj abhiyaan' that was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on BR Ambedkar's birth anniversary earlier this month. Leaders of several parties have dined at houses of Dalits in the past and are now attacking the BJP for nurturing a anti-Dalit mindset. It also appears that Yogi is adopting a similar strategy to woo Dalits in the state which many believe are not in congruence with the BJP. The chaupals (public meetings) move is also seen to make it clear that the central government was not responsible for the dilution of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Well, this is not just it. Yogi will again be visiting a family of a Dalit in Amroha’s Mehendipur on April 27 and dine with them. The chief minister on Sunday had examined the functioning of wheat purchasing centres in Shahjahanpur and Lakhimpur.

आज जनपद शाहजहांपुर पहुंचकर गेहूं क्रय केन्द्रों और गन्ना क्रय केन्द्रों का आकस्मिक निरीक्षण किया, गेहूं खरीद को लेकर किसानों से जानकारी ली और उनकी परेशानियां पूछीं। pic.twitter.com/Dgs3uWGrP5

— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) April 22, 2018

The loss in Phulpur and Gorakhpur bypolls has worried party chief Amit Shah and is seen as a reason for him visiting Lucknow twice since then. Yogi and his ministers have ramped up their community building exercises to ensure the huge mandate received does not get weakened in the run up to Lok Sabha general elections next year.