Yogi Adityanath to address rally in Lalu-Nitish stronghold

Patna, June 3 (IANS) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will address a rally in Bihar in mid June to mark three years of the NDA regime at the Centre, BJP state President Nityanand Rai said on Saturday.

"Yogi Adityanath will address a rally in Gandhi Maidan in Patna on either June 15 or 16 to mark three years of the BJP-led NDA government of Narendra Modi," Rai told the media here.

It will be Adityanath's first visit to Bihar after taking over as the BJP Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. Bihar is considered a stronghold of Janata Dal-United President and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his major ally RJD chief Lalu Prasad.

The BJP leaders are silent on whether Adityanath's rally will be a show of strength ahead of Lalu's 'maha rally' on August 27 which will be held to showcase a grand unity of non-BJP parties at the national-level before the 2019 general elections.

After his party's shocking defeat in the October-November 2015 Bihar Assembly polls, BJP President Amit Shah has decided to use Adityanath as the new Hinduvta champion to challenge and counter the Lalu-Nitish nexus, party leaders say.

Adityanath's visit is bound to boost the Hindu Yuva Vahini, a right-wing group founded by him, which has decided to strengthen its presence in Bihar by enrolling thousands of youths.

The group has demanded that the Bihar government should set up anti-Romeo squads and take action against illegal slaughterhouses, as in Uttar Pradesh.

Cow protection is one of the main objectives of the group, which has a strong presence in the districts of eastern Uttar Pradesh bordering Bihar.

The BJP leaders have already demanded that the Bihar government should set up anti-Romeo squads and seal slaughterhouses.