A day after Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav dared him to file nomination from Ayodhya in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday challenged Yadav to contest from the constituency against him.Speaking at an event in Balrampur district where he inaugurated and laid foundation stones for 78 development projects worth over Rs 803 crore, the Chief Minister said, “The ‘babua’ of the Samajwadi Party has become rattled. He tells me, ‘Contest an election from Ayodhya’. Why fight through your chelas (acolytes)? Let both you and I test our fortune from the seat. The contest should be face-to-face”“Akhilesh ji, Ayodhya is our sacred abode and a place of faith. I visit it frequently to ensure that there is no laxity in development there. The Ayodhya where the SP used to supply electricity for only three to four hours a day and where your government had imposed a ban on raising Jai Shri Ram slogans, is again becoming an example of Ram Rajya and evoking memories of the Treta Yug.”Taking a dig at the Opposition party, he further said, “How can those touching the feet of the mafia and offering prayers at their graves possibly fight us? The people have already shown them the door.”Reiterating his “80-20” remark, he said, “The Assembly election results will once again follow the 80-20 pattern. The BJP-led NDA will win 80 percent of the seats, while their alliance will get only 20 percent.”The Chief Minister also targeted the Samajwadi Party’s PDA plank, saying, “This ‘Parivar Development Authority’ has no vision beyond its own family. In the recent Rajya Sabha elections, they fielded two candidates. Neither of them was a Dalit, a member of a backward class, a Brahmin, Kayastha, Vaishya, Kshatriya or Khatri. Akhilesh Yadav’s ‘chachajaan’ (Ram Gopal Yadav) got one seat, while a wealthy capitalist bought the other. In the Parivar Development Authority, anyone who offers money from outside the family becomes one of their own. The actual meaning of PDA is ‘Pradesh Dubao Alliance’ (alliance to sink the state). They pushed the state towards ruin, robbed young people of their jobs and turned Balrampur into the country’s poorest district.”The previous SP government, he claimed, was synonymous with scams. During their tenure, these people appointed family members to commissions, playing with young people’s future.Story continues below this adThe Chief Minister said, “Before 2017, funds that are now being used to restore sites associated with Sanatan Dharma and improve connectivity were misused by these people to construct boundary walls around cemeteries and encourage rioters. No one can now incite riots, create lawlessness or compromise the safety of daughters in the state. Anyone doing so knows that they will have to go to jail or to hell.”The CM claimed, “The academic session of the university named after Maa Pateshwari has commenced. Once its building is completed, he will request the Prime Minister to inaugurate it. Former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee had entered Parliament for the first time from Balrampur in 1957, and a medical college is now being constructed here in his name. The tribal culture and heritage are being strengthened through the ring road, expansion of the sugar mill, and the Tharu Museum.”He added, “The previous governments allowed lawlessness to prevail. Wherever a mafia member set foot, he took control. SP goons would threaten traders and seize their lands. No one could step outside their homes after sunset. Before 2017, Balrampur had the worst roads. It was counted among the most backward districts. The SP government could not build the Mathura Ghat bridge until 2017, but when the BJP’s double-engine government came to power, it pushed the bridge’s construction. Before 2017, floods and disease had become the region’s fate. Our government has provided government jobs to 9.50 lakh young people in nine years. Young people from Balrampur are now also getting government jobs.”“The SP government produced miscreants, but no one can now engage in anti-India activities. We will not allow any miscreants to flourish in border areas, nor will we allow the demography to change. Diseases, encephalitis and smuggling were the identity of the SP,” he added.Story continues below this adAlso Read | Uttar Pradesh is the next big battle. Will Jantar Mantar 2.0 have a say?The Chief Minister announced that the compensation for loss of life in disasters and for loss of human life and livestock in human-wildlife conflict would be provided within 24 hours.The CM claimed that the Congress and its allies had moved beyond democratic opposition, and were resorting to abuse and foul language. By abandoning their values, they are misleading the country and pushing it towards anarchy, he alleged.“No one would be allowed to tamper with India’s honour, pride, and glory. Those creating lawlessness would meet the same fate as Naxalism and terrorism,” he said.The CM questioned the Opposition’s alleged “double standards”, saying, “When these people win elections, they call it an achievement, but blame EVMs upon their loss. They blame the EVMs for their defeat, threaten the administration, attack the judiciary, and put the Election Commission in the dock. Numerous scams, including those involving the Commonwealth Games, foodgrains, and coal, occurred under the Congress rule.”