Amit Shah Lauds Yogi Adityanath's Government, Falters on Facts

The home minister's claims regarding riots and medical colleges in UP are contradicted by government data.

Home Minister Amit Shah spoke at a gathering in Uttar Pradesh, prior to the state's upcoming Assembly elections in 2022.

(Photo: Arnica Kala/The Quint)

Ahead of the Uttar Pradesh polls, which are scheduled to be held in 2022, Union Home Minister Amit Shah addressed a gathering in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh on Sunday, 1 August.

During his speech, he spoke about the performance of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's government and said that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has made Uttar Pradesh riot-free and safer for women.

However, we examined three such statements made by the Home Minister during his address and found that they were inaccurate.

1. The current government has worked towards making Uttar Pradesh riot-free and has successfully done so since coming to power in 2017.

2. Since BJP came to power in the state, Uttar Pradesh has become safer for women.

3. While previous governments 'left' the state with only 10 medical colleges, the Aditynath government has made provisions for 40 new ones in the last 4 years.

Let's take a look at the facts of these statements one by one:

1. Uttar Pradesh Has Been Riot-Free Since 2017

The Home Minister said on Sunday, 1 August, that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government has worked to make Uttar Pradesh riot-free during their rule, since 2017.

However, the data from the National Crime Records Bureau's 'Crime in India report' contradicts the Home Minister's statements. As per the 2019 NCRB report, 5,714 instances of rioting were recorded in the state.

The state ranks third in the number of cases of rioting, after Maharashtra and Bihar.

In the year 2018 as well, UP ranked third with 8,908 instances of rioting and in 2017, it ranked second behind Bihar, with 8,990 cases.

Further, as per an answer given by the Ministry of Home Affairs in the Lok Sabha, dated 11 December 2018, Uttar Pradesh ranked one in ‘communal incidents’ in the year 2017. It had the highest number of incidents in comparison to years 2014-16.

Moreover, Uttar Pradesh police had also charged more than 135 people with rioting during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in February 2020.

The Quint had earlier debunked the same claim in March 2021, when UP CM completed four years in office.

2. Uttar Pradesh has become safer for women

While the home minister spoke about riots, he also said that the BJP has given the right to "mothers and sisters" to live safely.

As per NCRB's report on 'Crime Against Women', Uttar Pradesh has registered 59,853 cases in 2019. The number has increased each year since 2017. However, the crime rate in UP is 55.4 cases per 1,00,000 people.

3. Only 10 Medical Colleges Before 2017

The Home Minister also stated that the previous governments had 'left' the state with only 10 medical colleges in 15 years, whereas BJP's Adityanath government had managed to make provisions for 40 of those within four years.

As per a 2018 document by the Reference Division of Parliamentary Library, there were 45 medical colleges in Uttar Pradesh in 2016-2017. Of these 45 colleges, 16 were government colleges, while 29 were private colleges.

Simply put, the claim about the previous government leaving just 10 colleges isn't supported by the data provided in this document.

Further, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha in 2016, former Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Faggan Singh Kulaste stated that Uttar Pradesh had 38 medical colleges.

Additionally, former Minister of State (MoS) for Health and Family Welfare Ashwini Kumar Choubey told the Lok Sabha in February 2021 that 12 medical colleges (nine government + three private) were established between 2018-2020.

On the same day, responding to a separate question, Choubey said that "establishment of 27 new medical colleges have been approved in Uttar Pradesh, as proposed by the state".

While the official numbers are close to Shah's claim of provisions of 40 new medical colleges, they are not a four-fold increase compared to the state's pre-existing colleges.

The Quint has contacted the Home Minister's office seeking clarifications regarding his statements in Mirzapur and is awaiting a response. This article will be updated as and when a response is received.

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