Category: Uttar Pradesh

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Do or die battle for these leaders in Uttar Pradesh

Interestingly, most of these leaders belong to the new generation and this is the first time that they are in full command of the party they are heading, a report by Amita Verma

The 2022 assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh are more than just about forming a government.

This is a ‘do-or-die’ battle for those leaders whose political future depends on the outcome of the elections.

Interestingly, most of these leaders belong to the new generation and this is the first time that they are in full command of the party they are heading.

The leader who faces the biggest challenge of his political career in this election is Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav.

Having positioned himself as the main challenger to the ruling BJP, Akhilesh has single-handedly led the campaign, stitched up alliances and even selected candidates.

Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi

In 2017 and 2019, leaders like Mulayam Singh Yadav and Prof Ram Gopal Yadav had helped Akhilesh. Mulayam in 2019, had openly expressed his dissent on the alliance with the Bahujan Samaj Party.

This time, Mulayam Singh Yadav has stayed away from election-related activities though he does make an occasional appearance at the party office.

The credit – or the blame – of the SP performance in the 2022 elections will, therefore, fall squarely on the fragile shoulders of Akhilesh Yadav. The outcome could make or mar his career, as most senior party leaders claim.

Another leader in the same league is Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra who is in total charge of the party’s state unit.

Priyanka is finalising the poll strategy, selection of candidates and also the mood of the campaign. While she has focussed on the election strategy, she has failed to check the health of the party’s state unit which is witnessing an unprecedented exodus of leaders.

(Picture source: Twitter@priyankagandhi)

Her campaign for women and 40 per cent reservation for them in party tickets may have created a buzz in state politics but whether it will reap benefits for the Congress remains to be seen.

The Congress has also been losing leader after leader to other parties and this has left the cadres rather demoralised.

Since this is Priyanka’s first independent political outing, the result will decide her future in the Congress.

What makes her task even more daunting is the fact that this time, Priyanka’s mother and Congress president Sonia Gandhi will not be campaigning due to health issues and her brother Rahul Gandhi has also kept himself away for unexplained reasons.

If the Congress fails to achieve the desired results in these elections, it will be Priyanka’s second failure after 2019 when she had taken charge of UP and Rahul Gandhi lost his Amethi seat.

Her failure this time could bring out the knives and also create hurdles in her elevation to national politics.

Jayant Chaudhary, president of the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), is also facing a make-or-break battle in the UP elections.

RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary addresses during Samvidhan Live in New Delhi. (Photo: IANS)

This is the first time that he is independently leading his party into elections after the demise of his father Chaudhary Ajit Singh.

Jayant has the advantage of being the sole political beneficiary of the year-long farmers’ agitation and his political handling of the election scenario could revive his party that has been languishing in the sidelines for long.

If the RLD performs as per expectation in these elections, Jayant will be able to establish himself as the undisputed political leader of the Jats.

These elections are extremely crucial for Mayawati, president of the Bahujan Samaj Party. The BSP is at its lowest ebb and Mayawati’s unexplained absence from the campaign has demoralised the cadres.

If the BSP fails to get a decent number of seats, it could further isolate the party in Uttar Pradesh and put Mayawati in an uncomfortable position.

ALSO READ: BJP begins door-to-door campaign in Uttar Pradesh

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First phase in UP is challenge for BJP, hope for SP

First phase in UP is challenge for BJP, hope for SP

There is a battle for the BJP in western Uttar Pradesh, hope for the Samajwadi Party and revival for the Rashtriya Lok Dal in the region that goes to polls in the first phase on February 10…reports Asian Lite News

The region, considered one of the most politically sensitive, surcharged and highly polarised areas, especially after the farmers’ agitation, will set the tone for elections in the remaining six phases in Uttar Pradesh.

Elections will be held in the 94 Assembly segments in 11 districts of west Uttar Pradesh namely, Shamli, Meerut, Hapur, Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat, Ghaziabad, Bulandshahr, Aligarh, Agra, Gautam Buddha Nagar and Mathura, on February 10.

In the 2017 Assembly elections, BJP had received a decisive mandate in the region and carried that momentum further to other parts of the state.

The BJP, in 2017, had won 66 of the 76 seats in this region. The Samajwadi Party (SP) won four, the Bahujan Samaj Party won three, the Congress won two and the Rashtriya Lok Dal could win only one.

The scenario has changed almost completely in the past five years.

The wounds of Muzaffarnagar riots of 2013 have healed to a large extent and the Jat-Muslim hostility has diluted. The communal lines have blurred and farmer unity is now a bigger factor in the region. Religious polarization is unlikely in the region in the present scenario.

The BJP has been trying to placate the farmers by repealing farm laws but its own leaders are queering the pitch by announcing that farm laws will be brought back after the elections.

It has been a tough going so far for the BJP whose leaders have been facing hostile voters in the rural interiors of the region. The failure of the government to announce MSP guarantee, payment of cane dues, shortage of fertilizer and the menace of stray cattle are factors that remain major irritants for the ruling BJP. The government’s apathy towards families of farmers who died during agitation, is another major factor.

The biggest political beneficiary of the farmers’ agitation that lasted for one year, however, is the Rashtriya Lok Dal.

The RLD president Jayant Chaudhary has managed to regain lost ground among the Jat community to a large extent by extending active support to farmers during their agitation. Jayant has been visiting villages, attending Khap meetings and interacting closely with Jat leaders.

The demise of Chaudhary Ajit Singh in May last year, has also brought ample sympathy for Jayant and his party is poised to make a political comeback in west UP.

The Samajwadi Party, this time, is contesting the elections in alliance with the Rashtriya Lok Dal. It had allied with the Congress in 2017 but could not make much headway as Jats, then, had opted for BJP because the wounds of Muzaffarnagar riots were still fresh.

The SP, this time, is confident of riding piggyback on RLD’s growing popularity graph.

The partnership could give a tough fight to the BJP in many parts of western Uttar Pradesh.

Besides, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav’s uncle Shivpal Yadav will be contesting in alliance with the Samajwadi Party and this will help avoid a split in his key vote bank.

One factor that could upset Samajwadi Party calculations in the first phase is the entry of Asaddudin Owaisi’s All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM).

The party could play an important role in many constituencies as the Muslim population in this region amounts to around 26 per cent.

If the AIMIM succeeds in weaning away Muslim votes — or even a section of votes — the SP-RLD alliance may not perform as well as expected.

The first phase in western UP is also crucial for the Bahujan Samaj Party since the region was once considered as a party stronghold.

ALSO READ: BJP to showcase law and order, Hindutva to woo voters

This time, the emergence of Bhim Army which will be contesting as Azad Samaj Party is bound to damage the BSP which, in any case, is being questioned for Mayawati’s absence in its campaign.

Mayawati, has, so far, restricted herself to tweets and press releases but has not stepped out of her home to campaign.

The Congress, on the other hand, is losing leaders with an alarming frequency. Congress national secretary and one of its more popular leaders in the areas, Imran Masood, is all set to join the Samajwadi Party.

Masood, a former MLA, has been repeatedly urging the party leadership to join hands with the SP to defeat BJP.

Harendra Malik and Pankaj Malik of Congress have already quit the party to join the SP.

The women card of the Congress is unlikely to work in western UP where the patriarchal system still dominates the society and women claimants in elections are few and far in between.

One thing that is clear is that any party that takes a head start in the first phase where 94 seats — almost one-fourth of the total 403 seats — will be going to polls, will enjoy a definite advantage in the remaining six phases of elections in Uttar Pradesh.

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BJP to showcase law and order, Hindutva to woo voters

With the announcement of polling dates for the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, all major political parties have intensified their campaign, apart from taking pot-shots at one another…reports Asian Lite News

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is confident of making a comeback in the state despite the opposition parties — the Congress, Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, giving the saffron party a tough fight.

The party has been sounding confident on the issues it has taken up for the elections, as well as on the popularity of its faces in Delhi and Lucknow.

In fact, the BJP veterans have been continuously claiming that the party will repeat its last election’s performance.

The party which has often backed the idea of “a double engine government”, is constantly putting forth the issues and agendas related to Hindutva along with the development work. According to party sources, the BJP leaders will try to woo people on the basis of this strategy.

Apart from listing the achievements of the public welfare work of the Narendra Modi and Yogi Adityanath governments, the BJP leaders will also discuss the issue of Ayodhya, Kashi and Mathura, its core agenda.

ALSO READ: BJP sets up 24-member election committee for UP

Terming the issue of law and order as the biggest achievement of the Yogi Adityanath government, the BJP leaders are likely to be seen appealing to people to vote in favour of the party to keep the momentum going.

The BJP has also prepared a blueprint for the digital campaign in an attempt to reach out to the voters amid restrictions imposed by the Election Commission following rise in the number of Covid cases.

A BJP leader associated with the election campaign told IANS the party would be making an effort to woo every section of the electorate to vote in favour of the party. Hence, “the party has taken special care of the youth, women, elderly, the workers as well as the voters associated with the party over the Hindutva ideology”.

The party will continue to focus on its core agenda of “Ayodhya-Kashi-Mathura” as well, he said.

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Elections in 5 Indian states from February 10 to March 7

People cast their vote during 1st phase of West Bengal Assembly Election at West Midnapore in West Bengal on Saturday 27th March, 2021. (Photo: IANS)

Up to January 15, no physical rallies roadshows, padyatras, or vehicle rallies will be allowed keeping in view the pandemic situation, reports Asian Lite News

Spanned over seven phases, the elections to five states Assemblies — Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Gao, Punjab and Manipur — would be held from February 10 to March 7, and the counting of votes will take place on March 10, the Election Commission of India announced on Saturday.

Uttar Pradesh will go to polls on February 10, 14, 20, 23 and March 3 and 7; Punjab, Goa and Uttarakhand would vote on February 14; while Manipur will vote in two phases on February 27 and March 3, said Chief Election Commissioner Sudhir Chandra .

The elections would be held following full Covid protocols.

Up to January 15, no physical rallies roadshows, padyatras, or vehicle rallies will be allowed keeping in view the pandemic situation. All parties have been advised to conduct campaigns in virtual mode.

Invoking Aarticle 171 (1), Chandra said that the Assembly tenure has to end in five years and, therefore, elections are necessary.

As per the Covid protocols for conducting elections, all elections officials will be double vaccinated, will be given a booster dose and will also be treated as frontline workers. Booths would be fully sanitised and there will be adequate gloves, sanitizers etc for the polling staff.

More than 15 crore people in the five poll-bound states have received the first dose of the vaccine, while nine crore people have received both the shots.

ALSO READ: Uttar Pradesh has 39,598 voters above 100 years of age

Polling time has been increased by one hour in all the states.

The final electoral rolls were published on January 5. There are a total of 18.34 crore voters, including service voters. Of these, 8.55 crore are women. The EC has made an effort to increase the number of voters and as a result, all states have seen an increase, with the maximum voter increase in Uttar Pradesh.

There are a total of 24.5 lakh first time electors and 30.47 lakh senior citizens. The EC has capped the number of voters per booth to 1,250, resulting in an increase in the number of polling stations to 30,334 as the average number of voters per polling booth has decreased.

At least one booth in each Assembly constituency will be managed exclusively by women, Chandra said.

“It will now be mandatory to publish criminal records of candidates minimum three times in local newspapers and television channels. Even the parties are expected to do so with their candidates,” he said.

Earlier, Chandra said that the Commission has set out three goals for these elections: Covid-free elections, hassle-free voting experience and maximum participation by voters.

The preparations have been going on for at least six months with EC teams visiting poll-bound states.

ALSO READ: Modi’s Rs 2,097 crore poll bonanza

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BJP sets up 24-member election committee for UP

Union Ministers Sanjeev Balyan and S.P. Singh Baghel and Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti are also members of the BJP Uttar Pradesh election committee….reports Asian Lite News

The BJP has formed a 24-member election committee in Uttar Pradesh, including four special invitees, to prepare for the upcoming Assembly polls.

Uttar Pradesh BJP president Swatantradev Singh, state Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, deputy Chief Ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Dinesh Sharma are members of the committee.

Union Ministers Sanjeev Balyan and S.P. Singh Baghel and Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti are also members of the BJP Uttar Pradesh election committee.

Uttar Pradesh BJP in-charge Radha Mohan Singh, co-incharges Sunil Oza, Y. Satya Kumar and Sanjeev Chaurasiya are members of the election committee as special invitees.

Party national vice presidents Baby Rani Maurya and Rekha Verma, national general secretary Arun Singh, national secretary Vinod Sonkar are also part of the election committee of Uttar Pradesh BJP.

State general secretary (organisation) Sunil Bansal, and joint general secretary (organisation) Karmvir Singh are also part of the committee along with senior leaders of state and members of state cabinet.

Son of former Chief Minister Kalyan Singh and Lok Sabha member Rajveer Singh is also part of the committee.

Elections for the 403-member Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls will be held in February- March this year along with Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa.

The BJP has organised ‘Jan Vishwas Yatras’, which covered all the 403 Assembly constituencies, to reachout to the people with the works of the party ruled government at the Centre and state.

The BJP will have a community outreach plan to pacify Brahmins, who reportedly were upset with the party, will explain to the community about the government welfare schemes which benefited them. To reach out to the youth, the party is organising youth conferences in all the districts in which senior leaders and youth leaders of the party are participating.

The saffron party also has planned several programmes to strengthen its booth management.

Goa BJP postponed meetings

Amid a rising spate of Covid-19 cases in Goa, the ruling BJP has altered its election campaign strategy by postponing public meetings and focussing on small gatherings and door-to-door campaigning instead, state party president Sadanand Shet Tanavade said on Thursday.

“We have postponed some meetings that were supposed to be held across the next week. We will focus on small gatherings and door to door campaigning. Today’s two meetings have been cancelled,” Tanavade told reporters.

“Door to door and special contact programmes will carry on as normal. Up to January 10 we had planned public meetings,” he added.

Assembly polls are scheduled to be held in Goa in February along with four other states, namely Punjab, Manipur, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh.

On Wednesday, Goa logged 1,002 new cases, the first time that the single-day spike crept above the four-figure mark in months.

ALSO READ: BJP to corner Congress over ‘lapse’ in PM’s security

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UP soothes farmers ahead of polls

The order divided the targeted consumers into four categories – metered, unmetered, energy efficient pumps and farmers in the urban areas receiving metered power supply….reports Asian Lite News

The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh, has announced a 50 per cent reduction in power tariff on agricultural use.

The move is apparently aimed at assuaging the feelings of farmers ahead of the state elections.

According to the government spokesman, the decision will directly benefit over 13 lakh users in rural and semi-rural areas.

The order, announced by the Chief Minister’s office, divided the targeted consumers into four categories – metered, unmetered, energy efficient pumps and farmers in the urban areas receiving metered power supply.

On metered connections for pumps in rural areas, farmers would be required to pay only Re 1 per unit instead of the existing Rs 2 per unit. The fixed charge of Rs 70 per horsepower (HP) too has been reduced to Rs 35 per HP.

Likewise, in case of unmetered connection, the fixed charge has been reduced from Rs 170 per HP to Rs 85 per HP.

For energy efficient pumps, the electricity rates have been reduced from Rs 1.6 to 83 paise per unit. The fixed charge, too, has been slashed from Rs 70 per HP to Rs 35 per HP.

In case of farmers receiving metered power supply in the urban areas, the electricity rate has been reduced from Rs 6 per unit to Rs 3 per unit. The fixed charge has also been brought down from Rs 130 to Rs 65 per HP.

The Chief Minister’s office said the decision has been taken keeping in view the ‘convenience and prosperity’ of the farmers. The sop will come into effect immediately, a government spokesperson said.

ALSO READ: The ‘missing 4’ in UP polls

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AIMIM to host conference on status of Muslims in UP

The study, which will be tabled at the conference, is based on data collected mostly from government reports available in public domain and from works of well-known names in the field of research….reports Asian Lite News

The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) will host a conference on ‘Muslims in UP – Development, security and inclusion’, in Lucknow on Friday.

The conference will dwell at length on a recent study on the current conditions of Muslims in terms of demography, challenges in education, including madrassas, participation in industrial sector, entrepreneurship, population aspects, criminalisation and incarceration.

The study, which will be tabled at the conference, is based on data collected mostly from government reports available in public domain and from works of well-known names in the field of research.

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said that talking about various aspects related to the Muslim community without backing it with credible empirical data were usually dismissed as rhetoric.

“More than 80 per cent of the data used in the study has been picked from government records available in public domain. The remaining data has come from exhaustive academic works of leading researchers,” Owaisi said.

“The data available does not give a rosy picture of what the community is dealing with at present and more effort is required from all quarters to improve the situation.

“Muslims constitute 19. 25 per cent of the total population of Uttar Pradesh against the national figure of 14.23 per cent. However, 71.2 per cent of Muslims above 15 years are illiterate or educated below the primary level in the state as compared to the national average of 58.3 per cent. The educational profile of Muslims in 2019-20 as per PLFS shows that at least 40.83 per cent Muslims are illiterate as compared to the overall illiteracy rate of 34.01 per cent. Such data is essential to fix responsibility on those responsible for the state of affairs,” he said.

The conference in Lucknow is being held just ahead of the Assembly elections and while addressing the media, Owaisi said that the idea was to attract attention from all quarters of the society on the condition of Muslims in India.

“And what better a time than before the elections when issues related to communities and people get more attention,” he said.

ALSO READ: SPECIAL: UP Polls To Test Owaisi Factor in Indian Politics

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UP to go big on startups from India Pavilion

UP to go big on startups from India Pavilion

13 Indian startups to pitch their innovative ideas to global investors as part of the India Innovation Hub…reports Asian Lite Newsdesk

Uttar Pradesh (UP) is set to display its might in the startup ecosystem with as many as 11 startups from the state slated to present their innovative business ideas to global investors at the fourth session of the ‘Elevate’ pitching series on 14th December.

The popular pitching series is a key initiative of the India Pavilion at EXPO2020 Dubai that aims to display unconventional solutions created by 500 Indian startups over the course of five months under the Innovation Hub bus stationed outside the India Pavilion.

UP to go big on startups from India Pavilion

The startups from Uttar Pradesh will showcase their capabilities and present innovative ideas in sectors such as health & wellness, sustainability, agriculture, IT, technology, education, industries and many more. As per the Government of India data, Uttar Pradesh has over 5300 startups recognised by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) out of which over 2600 are women-led.

Some of the startups from UP to participate in Elevate-IV include  Life and Limb Pvt. Ltd that provides solution to people with upper limb amputation; Phool, a social enterprise that has pioneered the ‘flowercycling’ technology to reduce pollution in rivers by up-cycling flower temple-waste in India; Atma Nirbhar, a social venture that trains women to ride motorized scooters with the goal of increasing female labour force participation; Farmers Family, providing healthy and quality farm produce directly from farms to consumers and Truck Suvidha, that provides digital infrastructure for the truck industry.

Other startups from UP to be present are Edu Gorilla, AIPL Infrastructure, E-Spin Nanotech, Vymanik Aerospace, Constems AI and Tech Eagle while SOQO, makers of reusable leak-proof underwear for women which they can wear on their periods, is from Madhya Pradesh and Vizara Technologies is from Delhi NCR. 

With the introduction of the new ‘Startup Policy 2020’, Uttar Pradesh is aiming to inculcate the culture of entrepreneurship at school level itself to make students learn virtues of entrepreneurship during early years of their education.

The Government of Uttar Pradesh has established INR 1000 crore Startup Fund for providing finance to startups. This fund is available in the form of fund of funds wherein the state government will not invest directly into the startups, but rather it will make investment in ‘Daughter Funds’, which would ultimately invest in startups promoting innovative ideas across all sectors in Uttar Pradesh.

India is amongst the top 3 creators of unicorns in the world. Amidst the challenges posed by the Covid pandemic, 35 new unicorns have come into existence in India, taking the total number of unicorns to 72. The Indian startup ecosystem currently has over 57,000 startups from 628 districts across all 28 states and eight Union Territories, registered with the DPIIT and it is expanding even further. 

ALSO READ: With 5 lakh visitors, India Pavilion stands tall at Expo

Elevate platform provides startups the opportunity to gain knowledge about the global sectoral trends, best practices followed around the world, and get mentoring from sector experts and a networking window to interact with new-age entrepreneurs, innovators and investors.

The first Elevate session saw 10 startups across sectors from the States of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, pitching their ideas to over 15 investors, while the second session had 13 startups from Telangana presenting their ideas. The third session showcased 10 startups from Karnataka, Kerala and the UAE.  

The next Elevate will happen on December 22nd. To participate in the India Innovation Hub series, please visit: https://form.jotform.com/213232304501033

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BJP to Retain UP With Loss of Seats: Poll

According to the latest round of opinion polls, the ruling BJP is expected to grab 40.7 per cent of the vote share in the Assembly polls, reports Asian Lite News

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is likely to return to power in 2022 Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, though with significant reduction in the number of seats that the saffron party is expected to win, as per the latest round of opinion poll of more than 72,000 samples surveyed in the ABP-CVoter-IANS poll between first weeks of October and November.

Other key political players in the state – Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Congress are not in a position to dislodge the Yogi Adityanath government in 2022, as things stand today.

According to the latest round of opinion polls, the ruling BJP is expected to grab 40.7 per cent of the vote share in the Assembly polls. Notably, the saffron party has continuously maintained its vote share of around 41 per cent in the state; in 2017 Assembly elections the BJP had garnered 41.4 per cent of the votes polled.

As for other the vote share of other key political players in the state, the survey shows that while the vote share of SP is expected to witness a jump of 7.5 per cent from 23.6 per cent in 2017 to 31.1 per cent in 2022, the BSP’s vote share is likely to witness a slump of 7.1 per cent from 22.2 per cent in 2017 to 15.1 per cent in 2022.

BJP

The country’s grand old party – Congress, out of power in the state since 1989, is expected to get 8.9 per cent of the votes. It had secured 6.3 per cent votes in 2017.

In terms of number of seats, as per the survey data, BJP and its allies are projected to grab seats in a range of 213 to 221 seats in 2022 Assembly polls. Though BJP and its alliance partners will witness a dip of almost 100 seats from the figure of 325 seats they had won in 2017, the coalition is expected to cross the majority figure comfortably.

The total strength of Uttar Pradesh Assembly is 403 seats.

The SP and its alliance partners, emerging as key challenger to the saffron party are expected to win 152 to 160 seats this time. The survey further shows that BSP is continuously losing the political ground in the state as the party can secure victory on just 16 to 20 seats. Congress party is likely to grab 6 to 10 seats.

Notably, the survey found that more people don’t want to see incumbent Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath returning to power once again in 2022. During the survey, while 51.9 per cent of the respondents said that they don’t want Yogi Adityanath to occupy the post, 48.9 per cent expressed their opinion in his favour.

However, interestingly, when compared to other key contenders for the post of Chief Minister, Yogi is still the most preferred choice for the top post in the state. During the survey, while 41.4 per cent of the respondents said that Yogi is their preferred choice, 31.4 per cent opined in favour of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav for the top job and 15.6 per cent of the respondents said they want to see BSP supremo Mayawati as next Chief Minister.

Only 4.9 per cent of those interviewed during the survey wanted Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to be the next chief minister of the state.

Another interesting finding of the survey is that the majority of the respondents believe Mayawati, a key political player in the state for more than three decades, has become irrelevant in this election.

While 60.3 per cent of those, who were surveyed, believe that the Dalit leader is out of race for the upcoming Assembly polls, only 30.7 per cent believe that she is still a key contender.

Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi has been actively campaigning for her party in Uttar Pradesh, leading protests over a host of issues in the recent months, however, the survey data suggests that her political activism won’t benefit the grand old party in the upcoming Assembly elections in the state.

Out of those interviewed, while 52.8per cent% of the respondents said that Congress will not benefit from Priyanka Gandhi being active in Uttar Pradesh, 47.2 per cent believe that Gandhi will be able to woo enough voters for the party.

The Lakhimpur Kheri incident in which protesters were run over and mob lynching took place will dent the BJP’s electoral prospects, as per the latest round of survey conducted after the horrific incident.

During the survey while 62.1 per cent of the respondents opined that the Lakhimpur Kheri incident will harm the BJP’s election prospects, 21.5 per cent said that the saffron party will benefit from the incident, which snowballed into major controversy triggering widespread protests by the farming community.

The survey data suggests that the strategy Akhilesh Yadav is forging alliance with smaller parties that are essentially caste-centric with support restricted to a few districts like O.P. Rajbhar-led Suheldev Bharat Samaj Party (SBSP) will harm the BJP’s electoral prospects in the upcoming Assembly polls.

The survey data suggests that unemployment, farmers’ protest, inflation and the Ram temple will be key issues in the upcoming Assembly polls.

During the survey, while 29.7 per cent of the respondents said law and order will be the biggest issue, 16.7 per cent opined that unemployment will be the most important issue. While 14.7 per cent of those interviewed feel inflation will be the major issue, 14.1 per cent said that Ram temple will be the most significant.

ALSO READ – Yogi Adityanath terms his tenure ‘memorable’

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Yogi Adityanath terms his tenure ‘memorable’

Addressing a press conference here on the occasion, Adityanath said that his government had struck at the root of the mafia and paved the way for a safer and secure state….reports Asian Lite News

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said that the four-and-half years of his government in state was a “memorable” tenure that was devoted to good governance.

Addressing a press conference here on the occasion, Adityanath said that his government had struck at the root of the mafia and paved the way for a safer and secure state.

“We put the criminals in jail, confiscated their properties and not a single communal riot took place in Uttar Pradesh in the past four and a half years. Our priority was security for women an we set up the Anti-Romeo squad, pink booths for women and launched the third phase of Mission Shakti to empower women on all fronts,” he said.

The Chief Minister said that while previous governments built houses for themselves, his government built houses for the poor.

“We have a sense of stability to the state administration unlike previous government that had turned transfers into an industry. We encouraged officers to work better and be more responsive toward the public.”

He said that his government gave jobs to 4.5 lakh youths and set up a transparent system for this, adding that the state rose in ranks on the ease of doing business platform and investments started coming in.

Further listing the achievements of his government, the Chief Minister said that the state hosted the Kumbh Mela, Deepotsav in Ayodhya, Rangotsav in Mathura, Investors’ Summit and the Chauri Chaura Utsav and won accolades for the impeccable arrangements.

Referring to the Ram temple, he said that was fortunate that the construction of the temple began during his tenure.

“Those who kept taunting us with the date of construction of the temple, finally got an answer when the ‘bhumi pujan’ was performed by Prime Minister in August last year.”

Adityanath said that his government had developed places of religious interest into tourist destinations.

“We implemented the National Education Policy and also gave a network of expressways to the state,” he added.

The Chief Minister said that the state’s model of Covid management has been acknowledged not only in the country but also globally.

“We managed to contain the virus with maximum testing and maximum vaccination in the country,” he added.

He thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP’s Central leadership for their guidance and the state organisation and the media for taking his government’s achievements to the people.

ALSO READ: AAP promises free electricity within 24 hrs of coming to power in UP