Not a single person was killed by police bullets during the protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act on December 19 and 20, 2019, and those who died were killed by the “bullets of rioters”, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath stated in the Legislative Assembly on Wednesday.
At least 23 people died in the violence during the protests, most of them of bullet injuries.
“Agar koi marne ke liye aa hi raha hai toh woh zinda kahan se ho jaega [If somebody is hell bent on coming to die, how will he stay alive],” Mr. Adityanath said. “Upadravi upadraviyo ki goliyon se hi mare hai [the rioters died from the bullets fired by other rioters],” he claimed.
The police and the State administration “should be praised” for the work done by them during the protests as there was no riot reported in the aftermath, he said.
Mr. Adityanath accused the Congress and the Samajwadi Party of supporting and sympathising with the outfits that participated in the protests in which arson and vandalism were reported. These outfits “do not believe” in the Constitution and and they received “terror funding”, he alleged.
The Chief Minister singled out the Popular Front of India and accused it of terror funding. The outfit, on several occasions, had dismissed the government charge.
Mr. Adityanath claimed he would support any protest if it was done in a democratic manner and he would even provide it security and freedom. However, if in the garb of democracy, anyone “tears the Constitution to shreds”, attacked innocent persons, dishonoured women or participated in arson, “then we will explain it to them in the language they understand”.