CM Yogi Adityanath Claims 'Broken Statue' Video Is AI-Gen

VARANASI: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath strongly refuted allegations regarding the destruction of Queen Ahilyabai Holkar's statue at Manikarnika Ghat, terming the circulating videos as "fake" and "AI-generated."

The CM's Statement: Addressing the controversy during his visit today, CM Yogi stated:

"The statue of Queen Ahilyabai Holkar is safe and preserved. Once the renovation is complete, it will be reinstated with grandeur. The claim that temples are being destroyed is a lie."

AI Conspiracy: He accused the Congress party of creating fake videos using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to mislead the public and defame Kashi. "Using AI to show broken temples is a crime. We will not tolerate this," he warned.

Mocking the Congress leadership, he used the proverb, "Sau chuhe khakar billi Haj ko chali" (A cat going on a pilgrimage after eating 100 mice), calling their comments hypocritical.

The controversy erupted on January 10 when the Indore Holkar Trust claimed that the statue was broken during the corridor construction. Opposition leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge, Priyanka Gandhi, and Akhilesh Yadav, had criticized the BJP government. Currently, construction work at Manikarnika Ghat has been temporarily halted.