Kedarnath byelection has taken communal colour as the Congress heavyweight and former chief minister Harish Rawat alleged that the BJP was trying to create Hindu-Muslim divide showing an old photograph in which he is seen accepting a cap presented to him at renowned Piran Kaliyar Sharif Dargah in Roorkee.

As the BJP described the allegation as ”Rawat’s fear of bypoll”, the Congress leader claimed that the photograph in question belongs to the place where Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union minister Rajnath Singh, former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and his deputy Lal Krishna Advani too visited and given respect to the cap offered to them.

Harish Rawat said the BJP was afraid of its imminent defeat in the Kedarnath assembly by-election for which polling will be held on November 20.

He said that BJP’s fear for loss of bypoll has once again forced them to seek recourse to the lies and raise a bogey of communal polarisation.

“The BJP won the 2017 state assembly election telling lies to the voters that I, as chief minister, had ordered holiday for the Muslim government employees on the Fridays but they never produced that order. In the 2022 state elections, they again lied with a misleading narrative that Harish Rawat will set up a Muslim university in the state.

”However they never produced any evidence when I challenged them and asked them to tell the people where I said this or disclose the name of any newspaper or television channel if my statement appeared.”

Rawat said Every religion has its symbol of honour and that is why respect should be given.

He said, ”Now they are creating yet another lie by bringing to the fore my old photograph at Piran Kaliyar Sharif in Roorkee wherein I was presented a cap which I accepted with honour. Every religion has a symbol of honour and we respect it.”

The former Uttarakhand chief minister said “I am not alone who accepted this honour at Piran Kaliyar. Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Lal Krishna Advani, Rajnath Singh and Narendra himself have accepted this cap. But BJP people want to show my photograph and influence the voters in Kedarnath to win by-election.”

He further alleged that ”BJP men know well that Harish Rawat is a factor in Kedarnath bypoll. But they must know well that the same lie does not always work. People of Uttarakhand will ask for proof from the BJP for its lies in 2017 and 2022.”

The day people of Uttarakhand understand their lies they will throw the BJP in the dustbin, Rawat quipped.

Reacting to Rawat’s allegations, Uttarakhand BJP president Mahendra Bhatt said that his statement is the result of frustration for fear of defeat in Kedarnath assembly bypoll.
“Harish Rawat is fearing his party’s Kedarnath bypoll defeat. This fear is legitimate as the electorate in Kedarnath will vote for development, without forgetting the sins of anti Sanatan forces. People have strong memories, ” said Bhatt.

Terming Rawat’s social media post on Communal divide angle for Kedarnath byelection ‘unfortunate’, he said, “Harish Rawat is trying to visualise Hindu-Muslim politics in the land of Lord Shiva. He is recalling his promises of minority appeasements inside the closed doors. People of Uttarakhand and Kedarnath are well aware of Congress party’s anti Sanatan thoughts and acts.”

This perception of the Congress will be the guiding force for the voters in Kedarnath, he stressed.