Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday asked his party MLAs to be careful and polite while speaking over telephone as their conversations could be recorded and later misused on social media. “The CM has asked us to prefer meeting people over any issue in person and minimise conversations over phone,” said a party MLA who was present at a BJP legislature party meeting ahead of the government’s first Assembly session on Monday. “In the past few years, certain officials, particularly of the district police, recorded telephone conversations with MLAs, including heated arguments, and leaked them in the media. Such conversations go viral on social media and that draws criticism towards the MLA and the party. We have to be careful because we are in power in the state as well as at the Centre,” said the MLA. Sources said Adityanath asked the legislators to be patient even in the face of provocation from the other side. He is believed to have advised the same guidelines while meeting government officials in public too. Recently, Gorakhpur Sadar MLA Radha Mohan Das Agarwal’s public spat with IPS officer Charu Nigam had gone viral over social media. Adityanath also asked his colleagues to reach the Assembly 15 minutes before the start of proceedings and be present every day with proper preparation on the agenda. A workshop on the GST Bill for all the Assembly members will be held on Monday by experts from Delhi as the session has been called to pass the GST Bill. “GST is a complicated topic and some experts will make a presentation for MLAs on Monday at 4 pm, so that everyone can understand and express their views during the discussions in the House,” said a party MLA. Sources said the CM asked his MLAs to reach every meeting at least 10 minutes before the scheduled time.
