Lucknow, Sept. 23 -- Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday said that centuries of foreign invasions and colonial rule in India not only led to the exploitation of resources and people but also caused a significant decline in the Hindu population.

While addressing a state-level workshop on 'Atmanirbhar Bharat-Swadeshi Sankalp' in Lucknow, the Chief Minister claimed that the Hindu population, which he said was around 60 crore by the year 1100, had reduced to approximately 30 crore by the time India attained Independence in 1947.

"By the year 1100, the Hindu population in India was 60 crore. And when the country gained independence in 1947, the Hindu population was only 30 crore. Tell me, should our population have increa...