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Ayodhya is set to celebrate a record-breaking Deepotsav with plans to light over 30 lakh earthen lamps across Ram Ki Paidi and 56 ghats along the Sarayu river in the presence of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and the Vice President of India.
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00:00Good evening, you're watching NewsTrack with me, Maria Shaquille, where I'm coming to you live from Ayodhya, a city which
00:07is getting ready to witness what will be a spectacle of light, devotion and faith tomorrow.
00:15The massive Depotsa will be celebrated, something that began in 2017 when it was about one lakh diyas. Tomorrow, there'll
00:27be several lakh diyas that will be lit up. A celebration which will have not just outsiders witnessing it, but
00:38perhaps the entire country, because it will be broadcast live.
00:42For decades, Ayodhya has been almost like an epicenter around which the entire UP politics revolved.
00:52We have seen what happened after the consecration ceremony of Ram Temple in 2024 when the Luxabai elections was won
01:03by the Samajwadi party in this constituency.
01:08But since then, there has been efforts by the BJP to ensure that Ayodhya votes for saffron again. What will
01:19happen in 2027 remains to be seen.
01:22Multiple issues that is resonating in battleground Uttar Pradesh, from Chadhava Chori to Vote Chori.
01:32What will make the people of UP decide their vote that remains to be seen?
01:38But yes, our special broadcast from Ayodhya will happen tomorrow.
01:44But first up, here's the battle of narratives that we are hearing about.
01:55They say the road to power in Delhi runs through Uttar Pradesh.
02:06And the battle for 2027 is already taking shape, with faith, identity and the ballot emerging as key political flush
02:15points.
02:16A poster in Lucknow has set the tone.
02:19The Samajwadi party's message, 27 me Krishna Aayenge, projecting Lord Krishna alongside Akhilesh Yadav.
02:27The BJP's counter-attack was immediate.
02:30If Akhilesh invokes Krishna, will he back a Grand Krishna Jan Bhoomi temple in Mathura and the shifting of the
02:36Idga Mosque?
02:37The Samajwadi party's message, Sri Akhilesh Yadav.
02:57The Samajwadi party's message, Sri Akhilesh Yadav.
03:07The BJP has repeatedly accused the BJP of using religion for electoral gains, targeting it over the Ram Mandir Chadhava
03:13Chhori allegations.
03:15The BJP in turn accuses Akhilesh of playing soft Hindutva for votes, while reminding voters of the 1990 police firing
03:22on Karsavaks.
03:24But the battle is not just about Ram and Krishna.
03:27The SIR has opened another front.
03:29Days after CM Yogi claimed that 1.27 crore Hindu names are missing from UP's electoral rolls, Akhilesh Yadav has
03:36now questioned how Yogi knows the missing names belong to Hindus.
03:56SP is also up in arms against the BJP over alleged vote-chhori across the nation and is predicting BJP's
04:02loss in Uttar Pradesh.
04:03The SIR has been seen by the SIR, where the SIR is located at the SIR and Central Force.
04:15The whole SIR has been sent to the Bhrasadav party's message.
04:19The Bhrasadav party has been sent to the Bhrasadav party.
04:20In this Bhrasadav party, we have been sent to the Bhrasadav party.
04:27The Bhrasadav party has arrived on the UPS.
04:29And they have been sent to the UPS.
04:32CM Yogi Adityanath Meenwal has taken aim at the opposition's Votchori rally, accusing
04:37Congress and its allies of undermining democracy.
05:05So, as Uttar Pradesh gears up for 2027, what will dominate the political battlefield?
05:12Will Ram, Krishna, Votchori and Chhavachori drive the narrative?
05:16Or will caste arithmetic, jobs, inflation, welfare and law and order take precedence?
05:22In Uttar Pradesh, the battle may be fought through faith, slogans and allegations, but
05:26the real test will be whose narrative strikes a chord with the voter.
05:31Bureau Report, India's Day.
05:34Joining me on the show tonight, Sanju Verma, national spokesperson of the BJP.
05:38We have Abbas Haider from the Samajwadi Party, Professor Badri Narayan, columnist and political
05:44analyst.
05:45We also have Rashid Kidwai, author and political analyst.
05:48Before I bring in the politicians, I want to understand from Rashid and Professor Badri
05:53Narayan, who do you think is deciding the agenda of this election, setting the narrative so
06:01far?
06:01Of course, the elections may be two months away.
06:03But Professor Badri Narayan, who is deciding the issues of Uttar Pradesh battle?
06:11See, Maria, I think Uttar Pradesh, there is no one issue is going to decide the Uttar Pradesh.
06:20There are multiple issues in contest with each other.
06:24On the one hand, opposition is trying to raise issues like SIR and various kinds of the Raman
06:31issues like that.
06:33But on the other hand, BJP will come up with the governance, with the welfare policies and
06:41the yogi for the image, especially yogi in Uttar Pradesh.
06:45And so this election is going to be contested between two kind of narratives.
06:50One is pushed by the opposition, which is based on critiquing the governance of the BJP,
06:56why they're in this kind of SIR and they want to make a central issue.
07:01But you know, in the public, whatever we understand, the issue like Chhattachoni, issue like SIR
07:07are not going to work much.
07:10So the issue like social justice debates, issue like constitution, regulation may come again
07:16and may return back to the elections.
07:20But you know, the street is going to decide the Uttar Pradesh.
07:24You know, Professor Badri Narayan, one issue certainly that will resonate is the issue
07:31of law and order.
07:32And that's where Yogi Adityanath would have appeared to score much better than the Samajwadi
07:39party.
07:40But having said that, let me get an opinion also from Rashid Kidwai.
07:44Rashid, what do you think?
07:45Who is setting the agenda?
07:48I think the Uttar Pradesh election revolts around Yogi Adityanath.
07:54Whether he will be the third-side chief minister and a prime minister candidate for 2029 or
08:00later, I mean for someone, next home minister, whatever his kind of portfolio or profile going
08:06to be, or he's going to be voted out.
08:08I think in 2017, Mariya, Mr. Abisha worked very hard to bring, you know, the smaller groups,
08:16smaller social groups together.
08:18And that worked as a big advantage for the BJP.
08:22Now those smaller groups are disintegrating.
08:25And Mr. Yogi Adityanath is unable to consolidate.
08:29And that is where I think, you know, Akhilesh Yadav comes in because he has come with a very
08:35renewed kind of agenda.
08:36It is no longer that my allies, Muslim Yadav, he has come with a PDA and he's fighting a lot
08:42of traction.
08:42Yeah, it's PDA.
08:44Yeah, PDA.
08:45The contest is between two personalities.
08:48It's a contest.
08:55You see this as a personality contest.
08:57Sanju Verma, many see this as Akhilesh Yadav setting the agenda.
09:02Be it Chadhava Chori issue or the issue of SIR, which has also forced Yogi Adityanath to accept
09:10that one crore 27 lakh Hindu voters were deleted.
09:14So the entire issue of SIR is also being, you know, accepted by the BJP government here
09:22that there are problems associated with the special intensive revision.
09:28You know, Maria, first and foremost, before coming to the moot point of the debate,
09:32you're looking extremely pretty in that festive attire.
09:36You know, now let me come to the issue at hand.
09:40The main point is this, Maria, that is this going to be a personality-based contest?
09:46Yes, because Yogi Adityanath has a very charismatic personality and, you know, he has people who
09:53either love him or hate him.
09:54You know, there is no middle ground.
09:57I think one of the biggest takeaways from the Lok Sabha 2024 elections for the BJP with respect
10:03to Uttar Pradesh is that we did not see the non-Jatav-Galit vote bank and the non-Yadav-OBC
10:12vote bank engaging in a reverse consolidation against the BJP, which is what led to, you know,
10:19our performance, which was not very flattering.
10:22But since then, many lessons have been learned.
10:24And I think when it comes to the caste matrix, because you cannot do away with the caste matrix
10:30in Uttar Pradesh, no matter what you say, the caste matrix, the BJP is trying its level best
10:38to ensure that if we stay safe, we stay safe, we stay safe, we stay safe, and let's focus on
10:45the non-Jatav-OBC
10:47vote bank, particularly the Kurnis, the Khushwahas, the Mauryas, the Lodis, the Jats, the Nishats,
10:53the Gujars.
10:53And when it comes to the non-Jatav-Galits, we want to focus on the Kauris, the Dhobis,
10:59the Balmikis, so on and so forth.
11:01But last but not the least, I would like to take your audience back to what you said.
11:05I think law and order is a very, very, very important, you know, inflection point in the
11:112027 Uttar Pradesh elections.
11:13And don't forget, as you and me speak now, the quality cases under Yogi Adityanath in
11:20the last nine and a half years down 79.9%, robbery cases down 74.2%, rape cases down 76%, murder
11:29cases down 69%, and overall, heinous crimes are down 74.3%.
11:35Sanjivama, will you also accept that the larger umbrella that the BJP ensured that, irrespective
11:43of caste, people of Uttar Pradesh, the Hindus come under the larger umbrella of Hindutva, that
11:50happened in 2017, that happened in 2022 assembly elections, that ruptured in 2024 looks by elections,
11:58and you are sensing a further rupture in that, in 20, you know, in 2027 assembly elections.
12:07You know, Maria, like I said, will the Hindutva factor be a factor?
12:10And that's why you're speaking about specific, specific OBC communities.
12:15You know, Maria, yes, I'll come to that.
12:18That's a very interesting question.
12:19So, you know, let me just summarize it this way.
12:22Point number one, will the Hindutva factor be a very, very important inflection point in
12:282027 U.P. assembly elections?
12:30Yes.
12:30Does the BJP have a comparative advantage?
12:33Oh, most certainly yes.
12:35More so after the national spokesperson of the Samajwadi Party, Rajkumar Bhati, very recently
12:41made a despicable statement against Bhagwan Ram and Bhagwan Krishna.
12:45And barring Ram Gopal Yadav, no senior Samajwadi Party leader condemned Rajkumar Bhati.
12:51Has he been expelled from the party?
12:53No.
12:53So I think that sends a very negative signal for Akhilesh Yadav, who now wants to be the
12:59newly minted Hindutva poster boy, but that is not happening.
13:02I want to also focus on one more thing, Maria.
13:05Do you remember in 2025, there was the bipole to the Milikipur constituency from Uttar Pradesh.
13:13It's a scheduled caste, it's a reserved seat with 30% Dalit population.
13:17And the BJP won Milikipur, hands down.
13:21You know, we defeated the son of Avdhesh Prasad, Ajit Prasad.
13:26Chandrabhanu Paswan from the BJP won.
13:29That tells you a very interesting tale.
13:31Because everybody said, oh, Avdhesh Prasad is the new...
13:33I knew you would speak about Milikipur.
13:35Yeah, I knew you would speak about Milikipur, but we are in 2026, two months to go for 2027
13:42battle.
13:43You have forgotten about MLC elections.
13:45And you have also forgotten that you lost MLC election in Varanasi.
13:50You have forgotten that you lost MLC elections in Gorakhpur.
13:54These are constituencies which matter.
13:57One is Prime Minister Modi's constituency.
13:59The other one is Yogi Adityanath's home turf.
14:04Maria, you know, you knew I would come to Milikipur.
14:07Yes, I know you'll respond to it.
14:08But ma'am, can I quickly...
14:11Can I quickly get a response from the Samajwadi Party spokesperson before I go back?
14:17I'm going to come back to you, ma'am.
14:18I'm just going to come back to you.
14:19The point that was made by Sanju Varma just a few seconds ago with regards to Krishna Aayenge
14:27posters which have Akhilesh Yadav on it.
14:30This hasn't really been a pitch or a playfield of the Samajwadi Party.
14:37Your, you know, strengths have largely been around caste arithmetic.
14:43Why is the Samajwadi Party playing on this pitch?
14:49Well, if you clearly listen to what Sanju Varma was saying, you know, this is the exclusivity
14:56of the Bharati Janta Party.
14:58The fundamental difference between the Samajwadi Party and the Bharati Janta Party is that we
15:03believe in inclusive politics.
15:05Sanju Varma has taken names of seven, eight castes in Uttar Pradesh.
15:09However, the Samajwadi Party believes that the, you know, the most, you know, the part
15:14of society which has deserved, you know, most attention, they deserve more space.
15:19You know, people have suffered the most during the Bharati Janta Party regime.
15:22We believe when we talk about PDA, we talk about the, you know, the entire people of Uttar Pradesh.
15:29Samajwadi Party says that, you know, the election of 2027...
15:32You put up, Krishna, Ienge, posters, which has Achilles Yadav on it.
15:38See, the statement given by a very close aide of Bharati Janta Party from Madhya Pradesh,
15:47you know, derogatory statement against Bhagwan Krishna, who is, you know, who is a revered
15:52figure among the Hindus, not just in Hindus, but the people across the country from different
15:58faith, Krishnaji is a revered figure for everyone.
16:01And, you know, the statement given by a close aide of Bharati Janta Party with no response
16:07from the BJP leaders criticizing him is actually, you know, it raises a very serious question.
16:14You know what?
16:14See, the 2027 election has shown Bharati Janta is going to show the people of Uttar Pradesh,
16:20it is going to show the BJP that, you know, your government has failed in Uttar Pradesh on
16:25every ground, be it law and order, be it the, you know, employment, Uttar Pradesh, you
16:31have promised to give 70 lakh jobs every year.
16:34Now, it has been 10 lakhs, 10 years, and where are those jobs?
16:38You have promised to, you know, you have made so many promises to the people of the state,
16:42but you have done nothing on the ground.
16:44For, you know, the religion has been the main basic of the basic principle and the basis
16:50of the BJP's politics.
16:51No, so tell me, tell me, what is the main, what will be, what is the main issue, what
16:57is the issue on which the PDA is fighting this battle?
17:02PDA is fighting this battle against the failures of the Bharati Janta Party government.
17:07They have promised to give 70 lakh jobs to citizens of Uttar Pradesh every year.
17:11Where are those jobs?
17:12They have promised to give free electricity to farmers of Uttar Pradesh.
17:16Look at the distressed situation of farmers, especially sugarcane farmers in western Uttar Pradesh.
17:20You will come to know what is the real situation.
17:23They will try to make rhetorics.
17:24They will try to make slogans.
17:25But that is not going to work this time.
17:27We have seen what has happened in Varanasi.
17:28Can I say something?
17:30You know, last time, Bas Haider, I visited Ayodhya was during the consecration ceremony of
17:36Ram Temple in 2024 to now.
17:41Massive infrastructure development in Ayodhya.
17:44It's a city which has been lit up, quite literally.
17:48Bright and shiny, how it looks like right now.
17:52These infrastructure issues will be working in favor of, will go in favor of Yogi Adityanath,
18:00even as we look at the fact that in 2024, it was the Samajwadi Party which won this constituency.
18:07On what cost?
18:08In the Lok Sabha election.
18:09So, Sanju Varma, you know, while you talk about…
18:12The question is on what cost?
18:13You may talk about one moment.
18:15Sanju Varma, you may talk about…
18:18Yes.
18:19Yes, I'm going to just ask her that question.
18:22The fact that you have lost…
18:23The fact that you have lost, you know, during the Lok Sabha elections, you have lost during
18:29the MLC elections, isn't that a matter of concern that the issue of Chanda Chodi and
18:35Chadhaba Chodi is actually resonating with the Janta here?
18:39You know, Maria, you are a very smart journalist and let's get one thing very clear.
18:42If you remind me about the fact that we lost the MLC elections from Varanasi, I will remind
18:47you, about 2018, when we lost the Bipoles in Gorakhpur, in Fulpur and Kairana.
18:53And in 2019, Lok Sabha elections, we came back with a ban.
18:57So, you know, BJP learns from its defeats.
18:59It's not like the Congress or Samajwadi Party that we come on national television, blame the
19:04election commission and start playing the victim card.
19:07But I want to focus on one thing.
19:09Sugarcane prices have been talked about here.
19:11Sugarcane prices today, the fair remunerative prices in Western Uttar Pradesh for sugarcane
19:16is 390 rupees per quintal.
19:19It is the highest that it has ever been in the last 30 years.
19:23So, the SP spokesperson should do some homework.
19:26And my final point, please, I did not interject you.
19:29I want to say this.
19:30Why I spoke about MLCIPUR?
19:32Apart from the Dalit population of 30%, MLCIPUR is a very cosmopolitan constituency.
19:37And imagine our BJP candidate, Chandra Bhavu Paswan, defeated Avdesh Prasad's son, Ajit Prasad,
19:45by more than one margin.
19:47Does that qualify for something, yes or no?
19:49And, Maria, will you also talk about this?
19:52If we talk about BJP's loss from Varanasi in the MLC elections, why is nobody...
19:58I have not seen any journalist, I'm not talking of you, talk about the fact that the Samajwadi
20:04party...
20:04Think about Milgipur.
20:05Fine enough.
20:06Fine enough.
20:07Samajwadi party lost from Mainpuri.
20:09The Agra graduates constituency falls in Mainpuri.
20:13Mainpuri is from where Dimpal Yadav is a Lok Sabha representative.
20:18If you want to talk about Varanasi, talk about why the Samajwadi party lost from the Agra graduates
20:25constituency, which is part of Mainpuri, does that mean that Dimpal Yadav is not resonating
20:30on the ground any longer with the electorate of Mainpuri?
20:33That is also a question that needs to be asked.
20:35And I want to say...
20:36Abbas, Heather, quickly, 30 seconds.
20:38Well, first of all, if you calculate the inflation with the, you know, sugarcane price
20:43in Uttar Pradesh, you will come to know that this is not an unprecedented price.
20:46Certainly, if inflation is rising on a very...
20:49Oh, my God.
20:50What is, oh, my God?
20:51And second thing, I'll also tell you Rampu by election, Sambhal by election...
20:55If you will not let voters vote, how come you are saying that, you know, you have killed
20:59the sanctity of the democratic system in this country.
21:02You are vote chore.
21:04You have not let general citizens ballots into vote.
21:06Okay, I have enough time, just enough time now for...
21:08You have deprived them from the fundamental right.
21:10For Professor Badri Narayan and Rashid Kidwai.
21:12Final comments from both of you.
21:15I have two minutes on the show left now.
21:16Professor Badri Narayan, it's becoming increasingly clear that there'll be multiple issues.
21:22But what I don't understand, as a political analyst myself, is that why did Yogi Aditya Nath
21:30speak about 1 crore 27 lakh Hindu voters?
21:34The fact is that UPCO has been talking about multiple issues going wrong with regards to SIR,
21:42be it Pili Bheed, or in other constituencies.
21:45There has been acceptance of problems which have been associated with it.
21:49Why did UPCM speak about that number?
21:53Maria, first thing is this, you're very right that this election is going to be central of
21:59the Yogi Aditya Nath governance.
22:02And in that, the law and order will be the central issue.
22:06But the very interest, and Yogi Aditya Nath is constantly raising the issue of law and order,
22:11as is one of the capital, and per capital.
22:14But one interesting thing which you raised about Krishna.
22:17You know, this election, Krishna is going to be central discourse image in this election.
22:25But this is not going to benefit, and Yogi Aditya Nath and Achilles,
22:30both will try to mobilize the public, Hindu public, around this image.
22:37But you know, Achilles Yadho, Samalwadi Party, is not going to get much from using the Krishna image.
22:44Already Yadho's are a cohesive base vote for the Samalwadi Party.
22:49And in Western UPC, they can mobilize certain Hindu votes.
22:52But you know, Hindu worship multiple deities.
22:55And so, Yogi, there are share of the BJP in the Krishna part, in a big way.
23:03And they have also other images.
23:06So, Hindutva is going to again...
23:09Rashid, quickly.
23:10Rashid, please sum up your thoughts here now.
23:14Of course, we still have two months to go.
23:17I am in Ayodhya, which has been quite literally almost like the epicenter
23:23around which the entire UP politics has revolved for decades now.
23:29Now, that may no longer be the epicenter with Ram Temple already in place.
23:36Yogi Aditya Nath arriving here tomorrow for the Dipot Serb.
23:40He has projected himself, and rightly so, as a man who has delivered.
23:45What do you think we'll be deciding?
23:48So, Maryam, I think my friend Sanchu Verma's formulation is right,
23:52but her conclusion is wrong.
23:54See, on the caste matrix, Yogi Aditya Nath is a big misfit.
23:59See, look at the UGC issue.
24:01The upper caste are up in arms.
24:03The smaller caste groups, non-Yadav OVCs,
24:06as well as various Dalit groups, are unhappy.
24:09And Yogi Aditya Nath is not able to manage.
24:12So, unless the kind of Hindutva plan comes in
24:16and glosses over every other state, then Yogi is safe.
24:20Otherwise, the BGP is a bit troubled.
24:23Ten seconds, Maria.
24:26You know, I tend to agree that UGC is a big issue in this election.
24:32And the fact that the government has told the Supreme Court
24:35that it is considering setting up a committee to review it
24:39is an indication and has created further confusion.
24:43Ten seconds to you, Sandhu Verma.
24:44Like always, you get the last word on my show.
24:48Thank you, Maria, for being so gracious.
24:50You know, I just want to say that
24:51let's not lose sight of the woods for the trees.
24:54Today, Lakhnau is an AI hub.
24:57Today, Noida is the IT and electronics hub.
25:00Today, Kanpur is the industrial hub.
25:01And don't forget,
25:03the per capita of Uttar Pradesh is 50% lower than the national per capita GDP.
25:08Do you know that?
25:09You talk in all sort of crime,
25:11be it murder, kidnapping, crime against women, crime against women,
25:14crime against women, cyber crime.
25:15All right.
25:15Thank you on my bus, Haider, Professor Badri Narayan and Rashid Kidwai.
25:18I really, really thank you for joining us on the show tonight.
25:25Ayodhya, where I am, is going to be lit up tomorrow.
25:3030 lakh plus dias, a new world record will be set tomorrow
25:35in the presence of UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
25:39In attendance will also be the Vice President of India.
25:43The message is loud and clear that Yogi Adityanath has ensured
25:50that the glory of Ayodhya is restored in the last 10 years
25:54since he came to power in 2017.
25:57We'll be having a special broadcast from Ayodhya tomorrow.
26:02But for the moment, let's listen in to all the voices
26:05I captured just a few minutes ago when I was at Ramki Party.
26:10I'm leaving you with this.
26:10Thanks so much for watching.
26:21Ayodhya is getting ready to light up like never before.
26:26With just a day to go for the Tipotsaf,
26:29the city of Lord Ram is already glowing in all its festive splendor.
26:35From the main roads and intersections
26:38to temples and ghats along the Saryu.
26:42Colourful lights have transformed Ayodhya into a dazzling spectacle.
26:47And as night falls, it almost feels like the entire city
26:52has dressed up for the big celebration.
26:58But the real magic will unfold along the banks of the Saryu.
27:04This year, the target is to light up Ayodhya with 30 lakh earthen lamps
27:09across Ramki Perdi and 56 kharts.
27:13And the preparations are already in full swing.
27:18Around 35,000 volunteers are working round the clock, arranging the diyas in neat rows.
27:27The volunteers are saying that there are 30 diyas which will be lit up.
27:32I can see some volunteers here.
27:33Tell us about it.
27:35Who all are you?
27:36You call yourself volunteers.
27:38How many diyas in all?
27:40You've been working for how many days now?
27:43To be honest, it's really, really, really, really hectic.
27:46But at the end of the day, at the end of this festival, it's all worth it.
27:50So here in Ayodhya, our kind of welcoming Shri Ramji is by making a record every year.
27:57Our target is to leave 30 lakhs, 51,000 of the day,
28:02and to hold it all, a day of the day to day.
28:07But, even at the end of the day, the vision comes and,
28:11the Greatest Day of the day when the day is open,
28:11the day is to dry up, and keep it in the day.
28:16So when you see the rain and day,
28:23you see the rain and day,
28:24the rain, and the rain in the day,
29:04And if the lights and the hours aren't enough to leave you spellbound, there's technology adding to the spectacle.
29:13A trial of the Grand Laser Show has already been held at Ramki Perdi.
29:18Set to the dunes of Ramdhun, colourful laser beams lit up the Saryu riverfront, offering a glimpse of what visitors
29:26can expect on the big night.
29:29Ayodhya is all set to celebrate its 10th Deepotsav in spectacular style on Sunday.
29:37With Mayank Shukla, Bureau Report, India Today.
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