CM Yogi
UP Poll Results: In the by-elections held in nine assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh, the NDA-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) further strengthened Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s political stature by winning seven seats. At the same time, the Congress did not participate in the elections and the poor performance of the Bahujan Samaj Party re-established the Samajwadi Party (SP) as the main opposition party in the state. The by-elections in the state were a matter of prestige for the BJP as the ‘India’ alliance had dealt a heavy blow to the ruling alliance in this year’s Lok Sabha elections. The candidates who won the seven assembly seats won by the BJP alliance were unanimous that Yogi Adityanath and his call for (Hindu) unity played an important role in the victory.
If we are united then we are safe, if we are divided then we will be divided, the effect of the motto
Even before the Election Commission officially confirmed the results, a confident Adityanath arrived at the party office in Lucknow and reiterated the importance of “if we are united, we are safe, if we are divided, we will be divided.” The BJP had first given this slogan in August, but it was used very well in the by-elections. The BJP further strengthened the atmosphere by explaining “Hindu unity” in a door-to-door outreach campaign with its workers.
A BJP leader said, “During the dialogue we urged people not to divide on the basis of caste and vote unitedly. The slogans raised by our leaders ‘Bantenge to Katenge’ and ‘Ek Rahenge to Safe Rahenge’ helped the message quickly reach home.” The Muslim-dominated Kundarki assembly seat in western Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad district was a test for the BJP’s Hindu unity as the party had not won the seat since 1993.
The campaign revolved around “Ram and the Nation”
The BJP’s campaign in the elections largely revolved around “Ram and the nation” and Adityanath, during his brief interaction at the office, termed the BJP’s victory in Kundarki as a victory of “nationalism”. A senior BJP leader said: “This first victory of the BJP in this seat (Kundaraki) since 1993 was possible because the people united and supported the BJP, while the casteist tactics of the opposition were thwarted.”
Muslims also voted for the BJP in Kundarki
The BJP leader from Kundarki said, “The presence of 11 Muslim candidates there also did not help the SP opposition. So when their vote was split, we were able to secure our vote and this cleverly crafted unity motto played an important role in this victory.” Ramveer Singh, who won from Kundarki, even claimed that Muslims also voted for the BJP. He said: “Muslims trust me and this is evident from the huge votes I have received from them. I will keep your trust.”
NDA candidate also won in Mirapur
The SP faced defeat in the Meerapur assembly seat despite the significant presence of Muslims. In Mirapur seat, Sumbul Rana, daughter-in-law of former SP MP Kadir Rana, had to face defeat at the hands of Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) candidate Mithilesh. In this seat too, the SP had to bear the brunt of the split in Muslim votes as two Muslim candidates, including one from All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), polled 41,000 votes, more than the margin of victory of the BJP.
Yogi himself took responsibility for Katehari.
This was the BJP’s first victory in Ambedkar Nagar’s Katehari assembly seat since 1991. This was a seat for which Adityanath had been responsible and hence this victory also had its own significance. Confidence of victory in the by-elections was also visible in Adityanath’s conversation when he mentioned SP’s small victory margin in Sisamau seat of Kanpur Dehat and Karhal assembly constituency of Mainpuri. Adityanath told reporters, “If you see, SP’s victory margin in Sisamau is around 8,000 votes, much less than the victory of 12,000 votes in 2022. This time the victory margin in Karhal seat is 14,000. votes, compared to 67,000 in the last assembly elections. “Next time, as Keshav (deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya) said, we will also win from Karhal,” he said. In the by-elections in almost all the nine seats of the state there was a direct contest between the BJP and the SP, which means that the SP will continue to dominate as the opposition party. Apart from this, due to the absence of the Congress and the lackluster campaign of the BSP, these elections turned out to be close between the two parties. (input language)
