Lucknow, May 22 -- Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Friday alleged that there used to be a "mafia empire" before the BJP government took the reins of the State and every district was gripped by an "atmosphere of fear and terror".

"Before 2017, there used to be a mafia empire running parallel to the government here. Every district was gripped by an atmosphere of fear and terror. Daughters couldn't go to school, businessmen couldn't conduct their trade... There were no means of transportation, roads were in poor condition, connectivity in the state was in a terrible state, there was no electricity, and people were forced to live in darkness. Every district was handed over to the mafia, with the mafia running police stations ...