Yogi Adityanath

By Maeeshat.in Correspondent,

Lucknow, July 14: In a move that seems to be a step toward implementing the infamous Shamshan-Qabristan thought of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Uttar Pradesh government of Yogi Adityanath, in its first budget itself, has completely scrapped the financial provision for fencing of open graveyards in the state.

In the annual state budget, presented in the Assembly here on Tuesday, the last year’s budgetary allocation of Rs 400 crore for graveyard fencing has been done away with.

Some years back, the Samajwadi Party government of Akhilesh Yadav had begun allocating Rs. 200 crore for boundary walls of graveyards. In his last budget, before BJP came to power in the state with thumping majority in March this year, Akhilesh had increased the fund to the tune of Rs. 400 crore.

The move can expose unfenced graveyards to encroachment by land sharks. Being the most populated state in the country, Uttar Pradesh is home to 3.8 crore Muslims, that is 19.26% of the total population in the state.

Besides scrapping the graveyard fund, the Yogi government has also made a huge cut in the budgetary provision for minority welfare schemes and reduced it from Rs. 2029 crore in the previous budget to Rs. 1,695 crore.

At an election rally in Fatehpur of Uttar Pradesh in February this year, PM Modi had alleged that the Samajwadi Party government of Akhilesh Yadav was discriminating with people on religious grounds. He had demanded that if a Qabristan (graveyard) is built in a village, a Shamshan (cremation ground) should also be erected there. Though he earned huge criticism, the remarks are said to have played a big role in polarizing the voters in favor of BJP as the saffron party alone won 312 seats in the 403-member Assembly reducing the ruling Samajwadi Party tally to two digits.