France has been gripped by riots for the fourth consecutive day following the fatal police shooting of a 17-year-old driver. The unrest has attracted international attention, prompting a surprising reaction from the office of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in India
As France continues to be engulfed in riots for the fourth day over the fatal police shooting of a 17-year-old driver, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's office reacted to a viral tweet that demanded Yogi Adityanath be sent to France to control the riot situation there within 24 hours.
"Whenever extremism fuels riots, chaos engulfs and law & order situation arises in any part of the globe, the World seeks solace and yearns for the transformative "Yogi Model" of Law & Order established by Maharaj Ji in Uttar Pradesh," the verified handle of Yogi Adityanath's office tweeted.
The killing of the teen, identified only by his first name, Nahel, came during a traffic stop Tuesday. The incident captured on video shocked the country and stirred up long-simmering tensions between police and young people in housing projects and other disadvantaged neighbourhoods.
A Twitter account going by the name Professor N John Camm raised the demand to send UP CM to France to control the situation."India must send @myogiadityanath to France to control riot situation there and My God,he will do it within 24 hours."
Meanwhile, according to a report by Indian Express, Uttar Pradesh BJP spokesperson Rakesh Tripathi put out a video, saying, “There was a time when every district in Uttar Pradesh would see a curfew, there would be riots everywhere. But since Yogi Adityanath came to power and the government cracked down on rioters, ran bulldozers over their houses, riots have completely stopped in UP. The echo of this is being heard not just across India, but is reaching the world. And that is why in a country like France, there is appreciation for the Yogi model to control the riots, and expectation of the same. It is a global stamp of approval for Uttar Pradesh’s law and order.”
Anil K Antony, a Congress-turned-BJP leader drew parallels between what was happening in France and the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
He said in a tweet, “In hindsight, an apt time to recall the foresight of @narendramodi ji, @AmitShah ji and the Indian government in never budging against the pressure of short sighted, appeasement specialist opposition leaders while the Citizenship Amendment Bill #CAA was earlier drafted… (India) stuck to our mission and full intention of aiding persecuted religious minorities from the three neighboring countries. Else it would definitely have been misused to get vested interest infiltrators in.”
Deadly use of firearms is less common in France than in the United States, although 13 people who didn't comply with traffic stops were fatally shot by French police last year.
This year, another three people, including Nahel, died under similar circumstances. The deaths have prompted demands for more accountability in France, which also saw protests against racial injustice after George Floyd's killing by police in Minnesota.