New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday released a list of 91 candidates for the upcoming Uttar Pradesh assembly election. The ruling party has given tickets to 13 ministers and repeated its sitting MLA in Ayodhya.
The party dropped Co-Operative Affairs Minister Mukut Bihari Verma, whose son Gaurav will be contesting from his Kaiserganj seat in Bahraich, news agency PTI reported.
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Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's media adviser Shalabh Mani Tripathi has been fielded from Deoria.
The BJP repeated its sitting MLA from Ayodhya, Ved Prakash Gupta. Early on, there was speculation of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath contesting the state election from the Ayodhya assembly seat. However, it turned out to be false when BJP released its first list of candidates, and CM Adityanath was revealed to be fielded from his traditional seat of Gorakhpur.
The ministers who have been fielded include Siddharth Nath Singh, contesting from Allahabad West, and Nand Gopal Gupta 'Nandi', who will be in the fray from Allahabad South.
Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Shahi has also found a place on the list.
Notably, Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary on Thursday denied the possibility of a post-poll alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party in the upcoming Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh.
This came as Union Minister Amit Shah during a meeting with Jat leaders in New Delhi had said BJP doors are always open for RLD.
Speaking to the reporters, Jayant Chaudhary said, "They (BJP) did nothing for farmers. The police force was used against students in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh two days back. In such an environment, how can they think that anyone would join hands with them?", ANI reported.
UP Assembly Election 2022 — Polling Date, Schedule & Counting Day
The 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly Election will be conducted in seven phases:
- First Phase: February 10
- Second Phase: February 14
- Third Phase: February 20
- Fourth Phase: February 23
- Fifth Phase: February 27
- Sixth Phase: March 3
- Seventh Phase: March 7
The counting of votes and result announced will take place on March 10 for all five poll-bound states including Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Manipur, and Goa.