Unnao rape case unrelated to law and order, Muslims highest beneficiary of govt schemes: Top quotes from Yogi Adityanath's News18 interview

In an exclusive interview with Network18 group editor-in-chief Rahul Joshi, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday spoke about a range of issues, including the law and order situation since he came to power, BJP's hopes in the Ayodhya land dispute case and the pitch for Hindi as a common language.

Here's a look at the key statements he made during the interview:

On law and order situation:

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"There has been no riot or kidnapping in the state in the last two-and-a-half years. There has been a spike in investments because of better law and order. Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014 changed the agenda of the nation. The focus earlier was on caste and creed. Now, it has been changed to villages, poor, women and youth. Now, we can see large-scale results. It is the result of all this that we have been able to be successful in the state."

"Cases such as the Unnao rape have nothing to do with law and order situation in the state. We also have to understand that these cases are associated with the mindset of the people. People need to be taught good things for these things to end. We have to remember that the law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh is at its best in the last 15-20 years. The administration's sensitivity towards the common man and the seriousness of acting on complaints needs to be credited. The second important thing that needs to be remembered is that when the culprit starts shooting, our jawan cannot sit there with folded hands. They need to be answered in the language of a culprit, a history-sheeter."

"There has been no incident of mob lynching in Uttar Pradesh because we removed elements that incite riots in the first stage. We stopped illegal slaughtering at an early stage. We brought in well-managed shelters for cows."

On Unnao:

"The matter is still in court. We gave the case to the CBI. We arrested the accused and our government took the matter forward. If there was any carelessness anywhere, we questioned them. Whether it was police or hospital, we analysed everything. The rape victim met with an accident on 28 July. We want to know whether it was an incident or accident. It should come out and we hope the CBI gives a report soon. Everything will come to light soon."

"When some cases become fodder for media trial, we don't show all the aspects of the case to the society and the truth gets hidden. It becomes a disaster and people stay unaware of the actual facts and the real criminal takes advantage of this."

On his relationship with the Muslim community: 

"I have the same relationship with them that I have with the rest of the people. We don't divide the society on the basis of caste and religion. I might have given statements considering the situation at the time (of elections). But yes, we have never tolerated communalism, hooliganism and we won’t tolerate in future either."

"It has been our motive that development is for everybody. Remember, in 2014, PM Modi said ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas’. This is not a slogan, this is a reality and we are proud that we took everything to the ground-level. If we have given 25 lakh houses, all were not for Hindus. Muslim population in UP is 18 percent, but 30-35 percent Muslims have availed the benefits."

On use of Hindi language:

"Respecting anything which represents our country is our responsibility. The court should decide that along with English, things should also be provided in a local language. For example, in Tamil Nadu, people speak Tamil, so both English and Tamil should be provided. A common man would not understand English. It will be good if Hindi is also adopted as an official language. Bapu also said, 'Hindi desh ki bindi hai (Hindi is our country's beauty)'."

He also said, "If we promote Hindi with the local language (of the state), it will be great. Does a Tamil Nadu native not have the right to work in Delhi? Should they not be able to work in Lucknow, Bhopal or anywhere (in the north)? If they learn these languages, they will have multiple options. He/she can work anywhere."

On encephalitis:

"People have been dying of encephalitis in Gorakhpur and eastern Uttar Pradesh for the last 20-40 years (of encephalitis), but the number of deaths were less in 2017 as compared to 2016. But it was said that the reason for deaths in 2017 was deficiency of oxygen and the media played this for three straight days. They said children died due to oxygen deficiency. When we provide the news without knowing actual facts, we do injustice to people."

"With inter-departmental cooperation, we have brought encephalitis to an almost-zero level. And if this goes in the same way, then I think we will be able to eradicate encephalitis. What used to be a dream is turning into reality. Its foundation stone is the Swachh Bharat mission which was initiated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi."