NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will kick-start the Bharatiya Janata Party’s campaign for the Lok Sabha Polls in Uttar Pradesh from Meerut on March 31, where he will address a public rally. The BJP has fielded Arun Govil from Meerut, the actor who played Ram in Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan in the 80s, encapsulating a message on the Ayodhya temple, which was inaugurated earlier this year. The BJP also eyes Western UP with optimism to achieve its ambitious target of 370 seats on its own, despite facing setbacks in the last elections. In 2014, the BJP secured 24 out of 27 seats in the region, which dwindled to 19 in 2019, with all eight seats going to the SP-BSP combined. In 2019, BJP candidate Rajendra Agarwal had then managed to clinch the Meerut seat by defeating SP-backed BSP candidate Haji Yakub Qureshi by a thin margin of less than 5,000 votes. In 2014, the BJP clinched a staggering 71 seats in the state. However, in 2019, facing a formidable alliance between the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the ruling alliance’s seat count went down to 64. Despite the BSP securing 10 seats, the SP failed to surpass five. Lok Sabha polls will be held in seven phases beginning April 19. Uttar Pradesh, which sends the maximum number of MPs, 80, to Parliament, will vote in all seven phases. With political dynamics shifting in the state, the BJP is spearheading a robust alliance, encompassing parties like RLD, SBSP, Apna Dal (S), and Nishad party bolstering its position. On the other hand, while Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav aligns with the opposition bloc, Mayawati embarks on the electoral journey solo. Voting for phases one and two will be held on April 19 and April 26. Next, the state will once again poll in phases three and four on May 7 and May 13. The Uttar Pradesh electorate will also vote in phases five, six and seven on May 20, May 23 and June 1 respectively. The votes will be counted on June 4.
