By Online Desk
Uttar Pradesh is all set to decide the fate of several BJP heavyweights in its first Assembly election after Covid-19. Polling will be held in 58 seats spread across 11 districts of Western UP.
In the first phase of the election, nine ministers from the Yogi Adityanath government will be testing their electoral fortunes – Srikant Sharma from Mathura, Atul Garg from Ghaziabad, Suresh Rana from Thana Bhawan, Kapil Dev Agarwal from Muzaffar Nagar and Sandeep Singh from Atrauli.
Other ministers who will be contesting are Laxminarayan Chaudhary from Chhata, Anil Sharma from Shikarpur, GS Dharmesh from Agra Cantonment and Dinesh Khatik from Hastinapur.
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Why is this phase important? Senior political analyst Ratan Mani Lal, associated with the People’s Pulse, had explained in The New Indian Express that “the ‘pattern’ of voting in the first phase will spread a perception by word of mouth, and all parties are preparing to create a buzz in their favour on that day itself. This perception is expected to influence voting in the second and third phases. The BJP top leaders’ intense campaigning, the regular joint appearances of Akhilesh and Jayant Chaudhary, and Mayawati’s statements are all a part of that preparation.”
In the last Assembly polls, the BJP had swept seats in the first phase by winning almost all Assembly constituencies. Five years ago, the BJP won 53 of the 58 seats, while Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Samajwadi Party (SP) had two seats each and Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) won one seat.
The ruling BJP is in direct contest with the SP and RLD alliance, while the BSP has its pockets of influence in some constituencies.
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The Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls will be held in seven phases in February-March starting from February 10. Counting of votes will be held on March 10. In the first phase, polling is scheduled in 58 of the 403-member Uttar Pradesh Assembly. The second phase of the state assembly elections is scheduled for February 14.
