Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath got a pat on the back from Narendra Modi, who is slated to take oath as the Prime Minister for a record third term in a row on Sunday. After the NDA meeting on Friday, where Modi was chosen to lead the BJP and the NDA in Lok Sabha, Yogi Adityanath congratulated him. The UP CM congratulated him after the meeting, which is when PM Modi patted him on the back.
The move becomes significant in the wake of the BJP's poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh. Moreover, the Opposition, especially Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, during the polls had said that Modi and Amit Shah were trying to remove CM Yogi Adityanath from his position as he could prove to be a "threat to Amit Shah's ascent to the Prime Minister's post". Kejriwal had said that Yogi Adityanath would be removed as the CM of UP within two months if the NDA came to power.
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The UP Lok Sabha results were the most unexpected for the BJP as it lost massive ground in the state. The BJP even lost the Faizabad seat, which covers the Ayodhya Assembly constituency. The BJP went all out to consolidate Hindu votes in Uttar Pradesh. PM Modi inaugurated the Ayodhya Ram Mandir right before the polls, even though the temple was nowhere near completion.
The Hindutva agenda, however, failed in the state as the Opposition INDIA bloc snatched 43 seats. While Akhilesh Yadav's Samajwadi Party won 37 seats, the Congress won 6. The BJP managed to secure 33 seats and its allies, the RLD and the Apna Dal (S), bagged just 1 each. Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar Aazad won 1 seat for his party Aazad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram).
Yogi Adityanath will have a lot of introspection to do before the assembly polls in 2027.
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