If you thought Yogi Adityanath's rallies-by-phone in West Bengal were the work of a quicksilver political mind, you ain't seen nothing yet. As he prepares to hit the campaign trail in Purulia -- he's driving there, since his chopper wasn't given permission to land for this weekend's rallies -- the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister is whipping out a secret weapon: Bengali. And what did Yogi Adityanath tell voters in the language of Tagore? He waxed lyrical about Bengal's glorious past and the possibility of a great future, about the land of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Swami Vivekananda and Syama Prasad Mookerjee. Then, he landed the first blows. It was sad, Yogi Adityanath said, that the glorious land of Bengal was suffering because of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) government. The time had come for Bengal's people to democratically defeat her government to save the Constitution, he added. It was with this intention, Yogi Adityanath proclaimed, that he would stand in front of the people of Bengal in Purulia with a "flag of revolution" against corruption. See. , , , Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) February 5, 2019 , , , . Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) February 5, 2019 Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) February 5, 2019 All comes during a pretty turbulent time in West Bengal, which sends 42 MPs to the Lok Sabha in general elections. That's the third highest number in the state-wise tally. (Yogi Adityanath's Uttar Pradesh is first on that list, with 80 Lok Sabha seats.) When a CBI team tried unsuccessfully to question Kolkata police chief Rajeev Kumar about chit fund scams on Sunday, Mamata Banerjee rushed to his home, accused the Centre of attempting a "coup", and began a dharna that is still under way. This morning, the Supreme Court ordered Rajeev Kumar to appear before the CBI, but also placed a bar on his arrest by the agency. Make no mistake: Yogi Adityanth will have plenty to talk about at his Purulia rally.<doc-sep>UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath accused Mamata Banerjee government of anarchy and misrule in West Bengal. (Source: PTI Photo/File) UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath accused Mamata Banerjee government of anarchy and misrule in West Bengal. (Source: PTI Photo/File) After being denied permission to land his chopper in West Bengal by the state government, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday took road route for his rally in Purulia. The chief minister flew to Jharkhand’s Bokaro before travelling to Purulia in West Bengal by road. Upping the ante against the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government, Adityanath said, “You must have seen how she is trying to save a corrupt officer. Nothing can be more shameful, undemocratic and unconstitutional than a chief minister of a state sitting on a dharna (sit-in protest) to ensure that secrets of corruption don’t spill out.” Calling the TMC government in West Bengal as “corrupt and undemocratic”, he criticised Banerjee for not allowing benefits of central schemes to be passed on to the people of the state. The UP CM accused the Bengal government of indulging in unconstitutional activities. “This (West Bengal) government is embroiled in undemocratic and unconstitutional activities and that is the reason why a ‘sanyasi’ and ‘yogi’ like me is not being allowed to step on the soil of Bengal.” Before heading for Purulia, Adityanath alleged that Bengal was suffering under Mamta Banerjee government’s rule. “It saddens me that Gurudev Tagore’s Karmabhoomi, our Bengal today is suffering from anarchy and misrule of Mamta Banerjee government, now is the time that West Bengal should be freed from this government to protect the Constitution through a strong democratic movement,” he tweeted. Calling the Opposition an alliance of the corrupt, Adityanath said, “And that’s why I will stand today in Purulia holding the flag of this movement challenging the alliance of corrupts.” Speaking on the same lines, Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das said that this is an attack on the democracy that Adityanath is not allowed to land in a state. “You can see democracy is being murdered. Anybody from any political party can go anywhere in the country. CM of an elected govt of largest state isn’t being permitted to land there and address rally but he’ll go via Jharkhand. People of Purulia are waiting for him.” On Sunday, the UP chief minister addressed a public rally in Balurghat over the phone after his helicopter was denied permission to land. Earlier, the state government had not let BJP president Amit Shah’s helicopter to land in Malda at a local airport. Shah had later used a helipad of the BSF. Responding to a question that her government was denying permission to BJP leaders to land, Mamata Banerjee told reporters at her dharna site that “is not correct, it is absolutely wrong”. The Bengal chief minister has been on a dharna for the past two days against the CBI’s attempt to question Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar on the chit funds scandal. Mamata also asked Adityanath to take care of matters related to his state first. “Ask Yogi to take care of Uttar Pradesh first. So many people have been killed, even police were murdered, so many people were lynched, he himself will lose if he contests elections. He doesn’t have a place to stand in UP that’s why he’s roaming around in Bengal,” she said. Follow LIVE Updates: CBI vs Kolkata Police face off | নগরপালের বাড়িতে সিবিআই, ধর্নায় মমতা Meanwhile, BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain, who was to hold a rally in Murshidabad today, alleged that the TMC government denied permission for his rally. On Monday, a delegation of BJP leaders led by Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met the Election Commission with a complaint against the Mamata government. Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, S S Ahluwalia and Anil Baluni were a part of the delegation. BJP spokesperson Baluni had said, “The West Bengal government is denying us our democratic rights. We are not being allowed to hold rallies, public meetings and permission is not being given for landing of choppers…”<doc-sep>Key Highlights Adityanath urged the leaders, who had attended the TMC's January 19 opposition rally in Kolkata, to introspect on how democratic rights were being scuttled by the state government. "This TMC government is anti-people, anti-democratic and have compromised with national security," Adityanath said, while addressing the rally via audio link. BALURGHAT (WB): Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday lashed out at the "anti-people" Trinamool Congress government in West Bengal, saying the days of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee 's rule are "numbered". Adityanath urged the leaders, who had attended the TMC's January 19 opposition rally in Kolkata, to introspect on how democratic rights were being scuttled by the state government. The UP chief minister who was scheduled to address the "Ganatantra Bachao Rally" at Balurghat in South Dinajpur district Sunday could not attend the rally after permission was denied for his chopper to land near the venue. "The TMC government didn't allow me to come and meet you all. That is why I had to resort to Digital India of Modi-ji to address you. This TMC government is anti-people, anti-democratic and have compromised with national security," Adityanath said, while addressing the rally via audio link. The TMC government is afraid of the BJP as it very well knows that its days in Bengal are numbered, he said. Alleging that the TMC government had tried to stop Durga Puja in West Bengal in order to pursue its appeasement policy, Adityanath urged BJP workers to fight hard in order to ensure that the party forms the next government in the state. "Mamata Banerjee should remember that she can not misuse the government and its agencies in the state. It is shameful that government officials are acting as TMC cadres in the state," he said.<doc-sep>
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has taken a swipe at her Uttar Pradesh counterpart Yogi Adityanath, who is holding a public rally in Purulia on Tuesday, advising the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader to “manage Uttar Pradesh first” where “many people including a police officer have been killed”. Responding to a question about Yogi’s rally, Banerjee said, “Let him hold the rally…Ask him to manage Uttar Pradesh first. So many people have been killed in UP. Police (officer) was also killed. So many farmers have committed suicide in UP. So many people have been lynched in UP. Let him first manage Uttar Pradesh.” “If he contests (election) today, he will lose. He does not have a place in UP to contest, so he is roaming around in Bengal. Let him roam,” Banerjee said in Kolkata on the third day of her sit-in against the Narendra Modi government after a team of Central Bureau of Investigation reached Kolkata to question city police commission Rajeev Kumar in connection with a chit fund scam case. Yogi Adityanath is holding a rally in West Bengal’s Purulia as the BJP attempts to make inroads in the state in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Yogi Adityanath will enter West Bengal through BJP-ruled Jharkhand by road. The BJP has claimed that the Mamata Banerjee government has denied permission for landing of Yogi Adityanath’s chopper in Purulia. Banerjee has, however, denied the BJP’s claim, saying, “It is not true.” A BJP leader earlier said, “He could easily have taken a chopper till Purulia, which is adjacent to Bokaro but because of the Trinamool government’s decision to deny landing permission to him on Sunday, it has been decided that he would travel to West Bengal by road.” Another BJP leader, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the former Madhya Pradesh chief minister, also claimed that the Mamata Banerjee government denied permission for the landing of his chopper in Behrampore, where he is scheduled to address a public rally. He said, “The constitution permits all political parties to present their stand before the public. Who is Mamata Ji scared of? I have a rally in Berhampore tomorrow (Wednesday) but I have been informed that the permission for my chopper’s landing and rally’s venue has not been given.” The BJP and the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) have in the past sparred over public rallies of the BJP leaders including party president Amit Shah. The BJP alleged that the Mamata Banerjee government tried to create obstacles in holding public rallies by the party leaders. The TMC has rejected the allegations as baseless claims.