'Wanted 3 temples': After Ayodhya, Yogi backs Mathura, Kashi push

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday appeared to endorse a claim by Hindu groups over two shrines in Varanasi and Mathura as he hailed the opening of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya and accused previous governments of neglecting the temple town.

- Rajesh Kumar Singh

Invoking Lord Krishna on the floor of the legislative assembly, Adityanath said that in the Mahabharata, Krishna asked for five villages, but today the Hindu society was only asking for the three centres of faith.

"Before the start of the Kurukshetra war mentioned in the epic Mahabharata, Lord Krishna urged Duryodhana to give five villages to the Pandavas. Similarly, we are asking for our three holy places Ayodhya, Kashi and Mathura - lands of God's incarnation," he said in the state assembly while replying to the motion of thanks to the governor's address.

He also referred to the recent developments in the Gyanvapi mosque case, where Hindu prayers started in the southern cellar last week after three decades, following a district court order.

"We kept promises made to the people with the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. The consecration ceremony of Ram Lalla was wonderful, and an unforgettable moment. After the festivity in Ayodhya, Nandi Baba said why should we wait. He got the barricades removed at night," the CM said, possibly referring to the idol of Nandi facing the Gyanvapi mosque.

The barricades around the southern cellar were removed around midnight on February 1, hours after the district court order.