Ahead of Uttar Pradesh assembly elections 2022, BJP along with all party leaders is up in arms with strategies to counter the opposition and will likely sweep Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming elections. Prime Minister Modi led BJP is going round the clock to ensure the vote share of Purvanchal is in its favour. Purvanchal has become the political centre of the battle for the upcoming assembly elections and to keep its political base strong in the region, BJP ministers are frequently visiting the districts of Varanasi, Mirzapur and Gorakhpur.
It is assumed that the power in Delhi requires a strong political base in Lucknow. Likewise, to rule Lucknow, the party should have a strong political base in Purvanchal. The region decides the fate of the political power in the state of Uttar Pradesh.
Purvanchal comprises of 28 districts including Gorakhpur, Mirzapur, Varanasi, Prayagraj, Amethi, Kushinagar, Basti, Balia and Ayodhya etc. These districts further constitute 162 assembly seats which is a sizeable number to win the elections. For this reason, it becomes mandatory for a party to get hold of Purvanchal.
But the choice of voters in the region keeps fluctuating every five years. As far as the previous electoral results are concerned, the last three decades have witnessed three different parties. In 2017, BJP won 115 seats out of 164 whereas SP, BSP and Congress had to adjust with 17, 14 and 2 seats respectively. Prior to this, in 2012, SP won 102 seats whereas BJP, BSP and Congress were left with 17, 22 and 15 respectively. Moreover, in 2007, Purvanchal played a major role when Mayawati’s BSP swept Uttar Pradesh.
BJP is aware of the importance of Purvanchal as well as the fluctuating tendency of the voters in the region. Thus, Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with Home Minister Amit Shah as well as the CM Yogi Adityanath have set out a strategy to acquire the region and sweep the state in the upcoming UP assembly elections.
Prime Minister Modi visited his constituency Varanasi in the month of July. During his visit, PM Modi also inaugurated and laid the foundation stones of multiple development projects worth over Rs 1,500 crore.
Afterwards, Union home minister Amit Shah visited Mirzapur and laid the foundation stone of Rs 150 crores Vindhyachal Corridor Project (VCP). During the visit, Shah was accompanied by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Adding to the list, the CM of UP during a visit to Gorakhpur, also inaugurated 75 projects worth Rs 40 crore and laid the foundation. He said, “Development is an important component that drives economic growth, improves infrastructure, and raises the living standards of people. It will help in making India self-reliant.”
Apart from this, BJP has given the responsibility to strengthen its political chessboard in Purvanchal to its important face Arvind Kumar Sharma, who is a former IAS officer and has also worked in PMO with PM Modi. In such a situation, he was thrown into the politics of Uttar Pradesh soon after his resignation. A.K. away from Lucknow politics. Sharma is trying to strengthen the political position of BJP in Purvanchal under the strategy of Amit Shah and CM Yogi.
The activism of the leaders of the top level of BJP in Purvanchal is an indication that the main target of BJP in the upcoming assembly elections will be 164 seats in Purvanchal. Talking about the districts of Purvanchal, these include Varanasi, Jaunpur, Bhadohi, Mirzapur, Sonbhadra, Prayagraj, Gorakhpur, Kushinagar, Deoria, Maharajganj, Sant Kabirnagar, Basti, Azamgarh, Mau, Ghazipur, Ballia, Siddharthnagar Chandauli, Ayodhya, Gonda, Balrampur, Shravasti, Bahraich, Sultanpur, Amethi, Pratapgarh, Kaushambi and Ambedkar Nagar. The pattern of voters of this region has been understood by the BJP, as it has been voting under anti-incumbency since the last three assembly elections.
The BJP may have won a big victory in Purvanchal, but in districts like Jaunpur, Ghazipur Azamgarh, Pratapgarh and Ambedkar Nagar, the SP and BSP have put up a tough challenge. BSP had even defeated BJP minister Manoj Sinha in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the party had also lost 4 seats coming from Purvanchal. This is a sign that in Purvanchal, BJP will have to strengthen its hold here more than before. This is the reason why all the three veteran leaders of BJP are visiting the Purvanchal region one after the other.
The BJP trio is leaving no stone unturned when it comes to Purvanchal’s vote share. The frequent visit and back-to-back project inaugurations are proof that the ruling party is not going to lose it at any cost.
In view of the pattern of anti-incumbency voting in Purvanchal, the party has activated all the big leaders in Purvanchal, whose monitoring is being done by CM Yogi Adityanath. From PM Modi to Amit Shah and CM Yogi, everyone has realized the importance of having dominance in the region. Speculations are being made that BJP can also field CM Yogi from the assembly seat of Ayodhya to grab the most of the Purvanchal’s vote bank.
