Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who addressed election rallies across Malnad on Thursday, raised the contentious issues of cow slaughter and beef consumption, and accused the Karnataka government of “harbouring jihadis”.

He addressed rallies at Sirsi in Uttara Kannada district, Sagar in Shivamogga district, Balehonnur in Chikkamagaluru district, and Belur in Hassan district.

Calling Uttar Pradesh the land of Lord Rama, he said he had come from the land of Rama to Karnataka, the land of Hanumantha. Further, he maintained that Gorakhnath of his land had connections with Manjunatha of Dharmasthala and Kalabhairaveshwara of Adichunchanagiri in Karnataka.

He said he had taken a tough stand against “jihadis” in Uttar Pradesh, and accused the Congress of harbouring “jihadis” in Karnataka.

Beef consumption

Raising the contentious issue of beef consumption in Sagar, Mr. Adityanath criticised Revenue Minister Kagodu Thimmappa who had recently said there was no difference between the taste of beef and the meat of other animals. Earlier this year at a rally in Bengaluru, Mr. Adityanath had dared Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to prove himself to be a Hindu by banning cattle slaughter in the State.

During his visit to Sagar, Mr. Adityanath visited the native cattle conservation centre at Sri Ramachandrapura Mutt and held a discussion with its seer Raghaveshwara Bharathi. Later, he visited Rambhapuri Mutt at Balehonnur and met Veera Someshwara Swami.