LUCKNOW/GORAKHPUR: CM Yogi Adityanath will face his maiden assembly election as a contestant from Gorakhpur, known for its Gorakhnath Math that he heads as the chief priest, when 57 constituencies of Uttar Pradesh vote in the sixth and penultimate phase on Thursday.
In Kushinagar, another holy place where the Buddha delivered his last sermon, Yogi’s former BJP colleague and minister Swami Prasad Maurya is contesting on a Samajwadi Party ticket. Maurya has changed his party and his constituency too in Kushinagar, moving from Padrauna to Fazilnagar.
This round also has Ambedkarnagar, the BSP bastion known as its founder Kanshi Ram’s caste lab. Political equations have altered drastically here, though, after four prominent BSP leaders crossed over to SP before the polls.
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Caste, however, remains on the ballot as pockets of most backward castes (MBCs), such as Nishads and Rajbhars, are spread across the region. This phase will test the heft of allies on both sides—SBSP in the SP camp and Nishad Party with BJP. SBSP president OP Rajbhar has to ensure victory of his party’s nine candidates in this round and also show his ability to transfer his supporters’ votes to SP.
Nishad or fisherfolk voters are going to play a crucial role in close contests, if any, in Gorakhpur, Maharajganj and Deoria districts. Inhabiting the banks of major rivers in eastern UP, they account for a significant chunk of votes.
BJP and its allies won 48 of the 57 seats in 2017. In 2012, SP got 32 and BJP nine. BSP’s tally went down from eight in 2012 to five in 2017. Congress could win only one in 2017.
Yogi has been running a forceful campaign with road shows and public meetings in Gorakhpur and neighbouring districts this past week in an effort to repeat BJP’s performance of five years ago. Of the nine seats in Gorakhpur, eight went to BJP in 2017.
In Gorakhpur Sadar, SP has fielded Shubhavati Shukla, widow of former UP BJP vice-president Upendra Dutt Shukla. In 2018, after Yogi vacated the Gorakhpur Lok Sabha seat following his elevation as the CM, Upendra Shukla contested the bypoll, but lost.
Seven of Yogi’s ministers are seeking re-election this round: Surya Pratap Sahi (Pathardeva, Deoria), Jai Pratap Singh (Bansi, Siddharth Nagar), Satish Chandra Dwivedi (Itwa, Siddharthnagar), Sriram Chauhan (Dhanghata, Sant Kabir Nagar), Jai Prakash Nishad (Rudrapur, Deoria), Anand Swarup Shukla (Bairia, Ballia) and Upendra Tiwari (Phephana, Ballia).
Eight-time SP MLA and leader of opposition in the assembly Ram Govind Chaudhary is contesting from his traditional Bansdih seat in Ballia. Two-time SP MLA Ashutosh, son of deceased minister Kameshwar Upadhyay, will try to retain Bhatpar Rani, after having protected his seat during the Modi wave in 2017.
For Congress, its UP unit president Ajay Kumar Lallu is eyeing his third victory in a row from Tamkuhi Raj.
In Ambedkarnagar and Basti, the impact of changed loyalties might test the outcome. Veteran Kurmi leader Lalji Verma, expelled for anti-party activities by BSP chief Mayawati, is the SP candidate from Katehari in Ambedkarnagar.