New Delhi, February 4: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, one of the star campaigners of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Delhi, stoked a fresh row on Tuesday with his remarks against Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and Hyderabad lawmaker Asaduddin Owaisi. Adityanath, while addressing an election rally in the national capital, said Owaisi would also be chanting "Hanuman Chalisa" in the coming days.

Kejriwal, during a recent television interview, was asked whether he was a Hanuman bhakt. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief replied saying that he has been avidly reading the "Hanuman Chalisa". His remarks have provided fresh fodder to the BJP, which has accused Kejriwal of attempting to shed his pro-minority image. AAP to Win 54-60 Seats, BJP May Bag 10-14 Seats, Predicts Times Now-IPSOS Survey.

"Abhi toh Kejriwal ji ne Hanuman Chalisa hi padhni shuru ki hai, aap dekhna aage aage hota kya hai, Owaisi bhi ek din Hanuman Chalisa ka paath padhta dikhai dega. (Now Kejriwal has started reading the Hanuman Chalisa. Now see what will happen in the days to come, even (Asaduddin Owaisi) will have to recite the Hanuman Chalisa)," the UP CM said.

Watch Video of Yogi Adityanath's Controversial Remark

The campaign in Delhi turned polarised in the last lap, with the BJP leaders being accused of targeting the minority population of the city. Kapil Mishra, the party candidate from Model Town constituency, drew flak for his tweet which attributed Kejriwal's "hanuman chalisa" remark to the "unity of Hindus".

"This is the power of our unity. We should remain united and vote as one force. Our unity will dig the grave of the dirty politics played by the '20% vote bank'," Mishra said.

See Kapil Mishra's Tweet

The assembly elections in Delhi, scheduled to be held in a single-phase on February, witnesses an intense battle between the ruling AAP and the BJP. The Congress, which ruled the assembly for 15 consecutive years between 1998 to 2013, is trailing way behind the two parties as per the pre-poll surveys.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 04, 2020 03:03 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).