Subhechcha Ganguly 
Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, claimed on Saturday that gangsters who had previously terrorised people with extortion threats and kidnappings were now weeping after receiving court sentences. Speaking to a crowd following the ‘bhoomi pujan’ of a bottling plant in Gorakhpur, Adityanath claimed that unlike past governments, where goons and mafia used to openly threaten and kidnap businessmen, there is no place for illicit operations in Uttar Pradesh.
“Their wet trousers start to show when the judge condemns them. The public is aware of it. The mafia used to terrorise the populace, threaten industrialists with extortion, and kidnap businessmen. But now they’re scared out of their minds and fleeing for their lives “said the chief minister. His comments came just days after an MP/MLA court found politician-gangster Atiq Ahmad and two other defendants guilty of kidnapping Umesh Pal in 2006 and sentenced them to life in jail. Despite the fact that more than 100 cases have been filed against Ahmad, this was his first conviction.Adityanath referred to the calm atmosphere in the state during the Ram Navami celebrations, saying, “This year, while riots were taking place in several states of the country, there was utter tranquillity in Uttar Pradesh. Ayodhya, the birthplace of Lord Shri Ram, had a visit from 33 lakh people, and more than 1,000 processions were held there for the occasion. However, nothing unpleasant happened. Hindus and Muslims, in contrast, showered the processions with flowers.
After completing Bhoomi Poojan and laying the cornerstone for M/s Varun Beverages, a franchisee of the large corporation PepsiCo, the chief minister spoke to a crowd in his home district. Gorakhpur Industrial Development Authority’s Sector 27 is where the bottling facility would be built, at a cost of 1,071 crore, near the Gorakhpur Link Expressway (GIDA). “The Gorakhpur Link Expressway will be finished by the time this plant is ready. All the way to Nepal, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, and Jharkhand, four lanes of traffic are available. In the state up till 2017, there were just two fully operational airports and two partially operational airports. As of right now, nine airports are operational, while construction is ongoing on another 12 airports, Adityanath noted.
