Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath on Saturday said that criminals in the state will “either be sent to jail or killed in police encounters”, The Times of India reported.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leader made the remarks during a rally at the Ramleela ground in Ghaziabad ahead of the municipal elections, which are being seen as a litmus test for the government’s popularity.

“We will make life difficult for criminals,” he said. “They will have only two places to go: either they will be sent to jail, or they will be killed in police encounters.”

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The chief minister makes the comments around the 16.25 mark in the video.

Adityanath also claimed that the law-and-order situation in Uttar Pradesh has improved since his government took charge in March.

“We have to use force to stop criminals,” he said. “Criminals nowadays are fleeing the state. We will make life miserable for those who do not believe in the rule of law, those who shoot at innocent traders, kill innocent people and destroy the respect and integrity of women.”