New Delhi: The political storm brewing in the Bharatiya Janata Party in Uttar Pradesh, owing to the simmering differences between Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya over the party's poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections, made a landfall in Delhi on Wednesday.
As State unit chief Bhupendra Chaudhary and Union Home Minister Amit Shah met Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the situation during the day, speculation was rife of how the crisis is going to be managed.
Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya On Party's Performance In UP Lok Sabha Elections 2024
Chaudhary told the Prime Minister he takes moral responsibility for the party’s performance and offered to step down from the post. The meeting with Modi follows separate meetings on Tuesday between Chaudhary, Maurya, and BJP national president J.P. Nadda, to address the dissonance that comes ahead of the 10 by-polls that are imminent.
In Lucknow, Chief Minister Adityanath convened a meeting with ministers to strategize for the upcoming by-elections. Both Deputy Chief Ministers, Maurya and Brijesh Pathak, remained absent.
In response to the internal turmoil, a meeting was held at the Chief Minister's residence to address the prickly issue of by-elections for 10 assembly seats. During the meeting, responsibilities for each seat were assigned to three ministers, to ensure focused efforts in each constituency.
Cabinet Minister Swatantra Dev Singh, addressing the media post-meeting, confirmed the detailed discussions regarding the by-election responsibilities. Chief Minister Adityanath emphasized the importance of ministers staying in their designated regions until the elections conclude, stressing the need for direct engagement with party workers and strengthening local booths.
About The By-Elections
The by-elections cover nine seats vacated by legislators who have moved to the Lok Sabha and the Sisamau seat, vacated due to the disqualification of a Samajwadi Party legislator. The seats include Milkipur, Katehari, Phulpur, Majhawan, Ghaziabad Sadar, Meerapur, Khair, Kundarki, Karhal, and Sisamau. Following the setback in the Lok Sabha elections, the BJP is keen to secure victories in these by-elections to reaffirm its influence in Uttar Pradesh, setting the stage for the 2027 Assembly elections. The party is conducting strategic meetings from Lucknow to Delhi.
On Tuesday, Maurya and Chaudhary had met National President Nadda to align their strategies. In the evening on Wednesday, Yogi called on Governor Anandiben Patel. Though officials called it a courtesy visit, insiders say Yogi briefed Anandiben about the political developments.
Rumors Of Discord Surface
Rumors of discord between Adityanath and Maurya surfaced when the latter skipped several cabinet meetings over the past month. The tension became more palpable when Maurya, speaking at a BJP meeting in Lucknow attended by Adityanath, Pathak, and approximately 3,500 delegates, emphasized the supremacy of the organization over the government.
"No government is bigger than the organization (sangathan). No one is bigger than the ‘sangathan’. We are proud of our workers," Maurya declared, hinting at the discontent among BJP leaders over the increasing influence that bureaucracy wields in UP, which some believe has de-motivated the party workers.
In Delhi, party sources said after the meeting with Modi, that there was a strong need to provide greater representation to the Other Backward Classes in both the party and the government, as this section of voters had drifted away from the party, resulting in loss of several seats. Sources say, to attract the OBC voters, the party has two options: elevate Maurya, who is an OBC, as the next CM; or have a person from the community as a state unit chief.
Chaudhary’s offer to step down is the second and the easier option. He is a Jat leader from Moradabad who was given the post in 2022 to address the dissatisfaction within the Jat community towards the BJP. Maurya becoming the CM would be a much more a difficult choice since Adityanath holds great sway over western UP and it is where BJP was able to retain most of its seats
