UP: BJP goes all out to win a majority in Legislative Council

The members of the newly formed UP Cabinet, party MLAs and Members of Parliament have been asked to reach out to the voters and ensure BJP’s win on all 36 seats.

Besides, BJP UP general secretary (organisation) Sunil Bansal and his team have been monitoring day-to-day preparations for the polls.

In one such virtual meet held at the party’s headquarters in Lucknow on Friday, Adityanath said BJP candidates had already been elected unopposed on nine seats (25 per cent seats) and the election would now be held for the remaining 27 seatson April 9.

Around 32,000 people were connected by the virtual sessions, and Adityanath appealed to zila panchayat and BDC members, MLAs, mayors, nagar palika chairpersons, village pradhans, corporators and MPs to work for the victory of party candidates in the MLC polls, the counting for which is scheduled on April 12.
At present, in the UP Legislative Council, BJP has 35 members, the main opposition Samajwadi Party (17), BSP (4) and Congress and BJP allies Apna Dal (S) and Nishad Party have one member each. Besides, there are two members from the teachers’ group (non-political) and two Independents. In the 100-member House, 37 positions are vacant, but the election will be held for 36 seats, where elected representatives of local bodies will cast their votes.

Winning the MLC polls is crucial for the BJP for two reasons, explains a BJP leader: “When the BJP had come to power in 2017, the SP had a majority in the Legislative Council. If the BJP wins a majority in both Houses of the state, the opposition will not be able to create a hurdle in passing important bills and proposals. Secondly, it’s going to be a matter of prestige for the ruling party to win the Council polls after winning a majority in the Assembly elections. This will give the BJP an upper hand in both the Houses. In case, we lose a seat, the opposition will get an opportunity to question the Assembly poll results and the reliability of EVMs.”

According to party sources, BJP has directed its district units to ensure that if the candidates are unable to contact voters owing to the paucity of time, then party leaders, including MLAs, should reach out to every single voter with an appeal to vote for the BJP. “We didn’t get a break after the Assembly polls. The party has engaged us in the Council elections,” said another party leader.

“BJP is hopeful of winning a majority of seats, because 67 of the 75 Zila Panchayat chairmen, more than 600 of the total 825 block heads, and 14 of the 17 mayors are supported by our party,” said a BJP leader.

The SP is the main rival of the BJP, as the BSP has opted out of the Council elections.