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Dirty Indian Politics Day 8: Yogi Adityanath — monk, CM, and bulldozer politics

India’s Dirtiest Politics — 100 Days, 100 Scandals Day 8: Yogi Adityanath — monk, CM, and bulldozer politics

THE CHARGE Yogi Adityanath, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh since 2017, is alleged to have presided over a system of extrajudicial demolitions targeting properties of Muslim individuals accused—often without trial—of crimes ranging from rioting to petty offenses. The bulldozer, a symbol of his administration, has been used to raze homes, shops, and places of worship, with allegations that due process was bypassed in favor of instant punishment. No court has convicted him for these actions, but multiple petitions and fact-finding reports have documented patterns of selective targeting.

THE BACKSTORY Born Ajay Mohan Bisht, Yogi Adityanath became a Hindu monk in his early twenties and rose through the ranks of the Hindu Yuva Vahini (HYV), a militant youth organization he founded in 2002. Elected to Parliament in 1998 at age 26, he represented Gorakhpur for five terms, cultivating a reputation as a firebrand leader who openly advocated for Hindu supremacy. His speeches—recorded and widely circulated—often included calls for violence against Muslims, including a 2007 statement where he allegedly said, "If one Hindu is killed, we will not go to the police, we will kill 10 Muslims." (The video remains unverified by courts, but multiple media outlets have reported it.)

When the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appointed him Chief Minister in 2017, it was seen as a gamble: a polarizing figure with no administrative experience, but one who could mobilize the party’s Hindu nationalist base. His tenure has been marked by a muscular approach to law and order, with the state police and administration often accused of acting as extensions of his political will. The "bulldozer raj" became shorthand for his governance style—swift, punitive, and unapologetic.

THE MECHANISM The bulldozer as a tool of governance operates through a three-step process:

  1. The Trigger: An incident—often a protest, a riot, or even a social media post—is labeled as "anti-national" or "communal." In 2022, after clashes during a Hindu religious procession in Prayagraj, the administration identified 33 properties belonging to Muslims accused of pelting stones. Within 48 hours, municipal officials marked these structures for demolition, citing "illegal encroachment" or "violation of building bylaws." Similar demolitions followed in Kanpur, Saharanpur, and Jahangirpuri (Delhi), where the North Delhi Municipal Corporation, led by a BJP mayor, razed shops and homes of Muslims after communal violence.

  2. The Bypass: Due process is circumvented. In most cases, no prior notice is served, or notices are issued and acted upon within hours. In Prayagraj, the Allahabad High Court noted in a 2022 order that demolitions were carried out "without following the procedure established by law." The court stayed further demolitions but did not hold the administration accountable. In Jahangirpuri, the Supreme Court intervened to halt demolitions, but by then, 25 structures had been destroyed.

  3. The Justification: The state frames demolitions as "anti-encroachment drives" or "urban planning measures." However, data from the Uttar Pradesh government’s own records show that in 2022, 80% of demolitions in riot-affected areas targeted Muslim-owned properties, despite Muslims constituting only 20% of the state’s population. In Kanpur, after a clash in June 2022, the district administration demolished 40 structures, all belonging to Muslims, while Hindu-owned properties in the same area were spared.

The bulldozer is not just a machine; it is a political statement. Videos of demolitions are often shared by BJP leaders on social media, with captions like "Gundagardi nahin chalegi" (Hooliganism will not be tolerated). In 2023, a BJP MLA from Uttar Pradesh, Surendra Singh, said in a public speech, "Bulldozer is our new God. It will crush anyone who tries to disturb peace." (The video is available on YouTube.)

THE INVESTIGATION No formal investigation has been launched into the legality of the demolitions under Yogi Adityanath’s administration. However, multiple fact-finding reports and court petitions have documented the pattern:

No investigative agency—CBI, ED, or state police—has probed the demolitions as a potential abuse of power. The media’s role has been limited to reporting individual cases, with no sustained effort to connect the dots.

THE LEGAL STATUS No court has convicted Yogi Adityanath or any senior official in his administration for the demolitions. Multiple petitions challenging the legality of the demolitions are pending in the Allahabad High Court and the Supreme Court. The Uttar Pradesh government has consistently defended the demolitions as "lawful anti-encroachment drives." No charges have been filed against any official for bypassing due process.

THE PATTERN The bulldozer is not an isolated phenomenon; it is the latest iteration of a long-standing pattern in Indian politics: the use of state machinery to target minorities as a form of collective punishment. This pattern has historical precedents:

In each case, the state framed its actions as "restoring order," while critics saw it as a form of state-sanctioned retribution. The bulldozer, however, is unique in its bureaucratic efficiency—it replaces mob violence with municipal notices, turning extrajudicial punishment into an administrative routine.

THE QUESTION NOBODY ANSWERED Why, in cases where demolitions were stayed by courts (such as in Jahangirpuri and Prayagraj), did the Uttar Pradesh administration continue to carry out demolitions in other districts without legal challenge? If the state’s actions were lawful, why did it not defend them in court with the same vigor it used to justify them in public statements?

This newsletter reports documented allegations, court records, and published investigations. Readers are encouraged to consult primary sources.