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Date: 19 October, 2026

To: Honourable Chief Justice

High Court of Uttar Pradesh

Subject: Restraining Yogi Adityanath government from using state resources on a massive scale on religious events.

Honourable Sir,

Kindly treat this submission as a Public Interest Litigation.

The Uttar Pradesh government started a new tradition in the name of Deepotsav in Ayodhya since Yogi Adityanath became the Chief Minister in 2017. When the practice of lighting earthen lamps during Deepawali is going out of vogue and people prefer to put up strings of miniature electric bulbs, he has started lighting earthen lamps in large numbers. For some strange reason an academic institution, Ram Manohar Lohia Avadh University, has been chosen as the nodal agency for implementing the programme of lighting earthen lamps. It remains a mystery how this University justifies this as part of its academic programme. It lit approximately 51,000 earthen lamps in 2017, 3 lakhs in 2018, 4 lakhs in 2019, 6 lakhs in 2020, 9 lakhs in 2021, 17 lakhs in 2022, 22 lakhs in 2023, 25.12 lakhs in 2024 and 26.17 lakhs in 2025 with the apparent aim of setting a Guinness world record. About 33,000 volunteers, mainly students of  Ram Manohar Lohia Avadh University and other colleges were employed in 2025 to implement the idea. About 73,000 litres of oil and 55 lakhs cotton wicks were used. The estimated cost of lighting the lamps in 2023 was roughly Rs. 3 crores. It beats logic why would one waste more precious resources when the previous record is already held by it, not once but year after year? Is it the government’s job to get its name in the Guinness Book of World Records by undertaking such a colossal waste of public resources? Can the government force an academic institution to take up a non-academic activity on such a scale?

The U.P. State government helicopters are used to bring paid models dressed up as Ram, Sita and Laxman to Ayodhya where the Chief Minister receives them to recreate the scene of Pushpak Viman coming to Ayodhya. Another helicopter showers flowers after the first one has landed. Does Yogi Adityanath have the right to use state resources according to his whim?

Yogi Adityanath and his officials also use U.P. state government helicopters to shower petals on Kanwariyas. Senior district and state level administrative and police officers are chosen to do this. How can this be justified as part of their duty? Is there a protocol to use U.P. state government’s helicopter?

Kindly restrain Yogi Adityanath government from lighting earthen lamps in such large numbers every year. He can light a lamp symbolically and can encourage people to light the remaining at their personal expenses. Yogi Adityanath already holds the Guinness World record for lighting largest number of lamps last year and nobody is likely to break this record. Hence, he must not waste any more resources. Similarly, the U.P. government should be restrained from using U.P government helicopters for religious events. They should be used only in emergency situations.

Submitted by: Sandeep Pandey

Secretary General, Socialist Party (India)

A-893, Indira Nagar, Lucknow-226016, U.P.

Phone: 0522 2355978, 3564437

E-mail: ashaashram@yahoo.com