After the defeat in the Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party is eyeing the assembly by-elections in Uttar Pradesh. BJP wants to forget the pain of defeat by doing well in the by-elections on 10 seats. For this strategy is being prepared from the authority to the organization.
However, the statistics of the by-elections held in Uttar Pradesh during the Yogi regime did not favor the BJP. UP has held 10 by-elections since 2017, out of which the BJP has faced defeat 5 times and the party has managed to wrest seats from the SP only 3 times. In such a situation, the question is whether the BJP can do a miracle this time?
When were by-elections held during Yogi Raj, full report
Gorakhpur-Phulpur by-election, 2018
Bye-elections were held in Gorakhpur and Phulpur after the formation of Yogi Adityanath’s government in UP. Both the seats fell vacant due to the resignation of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya. BJP’s victory in both places was considered certain, but Akhilesh Yadav’s equation changed that.
SP’s Nagendra Patel has won in Phulpur and Praveen Nishad has won in Gorakhpur. However, the BJP won both the seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
Also defeated in Kaira by-election
This year, the Lok Sabha by-election was held in Kairana in western UP. This seat fell vacant after the death of Chaudhary Hukum Singh. Kairana is considered as the laboratory of BJP. In 2014, Hukum Singh won big from here.
BJP put its full strength in Kaira by-election. SP supported RLD candidate Tabassum Hasan here. BJP could not break the alliance of SP and RLD.
By-elections were held on 11 assembly seats
After the Lok Sabha elections in 2019, by-elections were announced for 11 assembly seats. Jalalpore, Lucknow Cantt, Zaidpur, Ghosi, Balha, Manikpur, Iglas, Rampur, Govindnagar, Pratapgarh and Gangoh constituencies where by-elections were declared.
Before the by-elections BJP had 9 out of these 11 seats, but after the by-elections BJP lost one seat. The party lost the Zaidpur seat of Barabanki. SP got 2 seats in this by-election. Before the by-elections, the party had only Rampur seat, but after the by-elections, it also got Jalalpore and Zaidpur seats.
After a long time, BJP won by 6-1
By-elections were held for 7 assembly seats of UP in 2020. It includes seats like Malhani, Deoria, Bangarmal. The Yogi government again used its full strength in these 7 seats. This time the party benefited.
BJP won all seats except Malhani. SP could only retain the seat of Malha.
Defeated in Mainpuri, saffron waved in Rampur
By-elections for Mainpuri Lok Sabha and Rampur Assembly seats were held 6 months after the assembly elections in 2022. Both Mainpuri and Rampur are considered SP strongholds. SP fielded Dimple Yadav from Mainpuri seat, while Asim Ghadha from nearby Azam got ticket from Rampur.
BJP could not win the Mainpuri seat despite exerting all its might, while it won in Rampur. Just a few months before this, the BJP had defeated the SP in the Azamgarh by-election. SP’s Dharmendra Yadav was defeated by BJP’s Dinesh Lal Yadav. However, SP regained this seat in 2024.
The vote was taken away, the investigation also registered a victory
A by-election was announced for the Swar seat in 2023 after Abdullah Azam lost his seat. Meanwhile, the Election Commission also decided to hold elections in Mirzapur constituency. BJP gave both the seats to its ally Apna Dal.
His party won the by-elections held on both the seats. Rinki Cole from Chambe and Shafiq Ahmad Ansari from Swar were elected MLAs. SP has lost one seat in this by-election.
BJP has suffered a major blow in Ghosi
A by-election was announced for the Ghosi seat of Mau district in late 2023. The seat fell vacant due to the resignation of SP’s Dara Singh Chauhan. BJP made Dara Singh Chauhan its candidate from here. SP made Sudhakar Singh its candidate.
The by-election became a question of prestige for both parties. Big leaders of BJP and SP had camped in Ghosi, but due to booth management, SP won the election here by more than 40 thousand votes.
SP played this game in 2024 by-elections
Along with the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, by-elections were also held on 4 assembly seats. The constituencies on which by-elections were held include Lucknow East in capital Lucknow, Duddi in Sonbhadra, Gensadi in Balrampur and Dadraul in Shahjahanpur.
Before the by-elections, the BJP held all four seats, but in the by-elections, the SP wrested one seat away from the BJP. Before the by-election, the SP had only Gansadi seat. SP won Gansdi and Duddi, while BJP won Lucknow East and Dadraul seats.
By-elections will be held on these 10 seats of UP
There are currently 10 seats lying vacant in the UP Assembly due to election or death of MLAs as MPs. By-elections to these seats may be held in October-November. The by-elections to be held include Katehari in Ambedkar Nagar, Milkipur in Faizabad, Shehar seat in Ghaziabad, Sheeshamau in Kanpur, Phulpur in Prayagraj, Karhal in Mainpuri, Kundarki in Moradabad, Mirapur in Muzaffarnagar, Majwa in Mirzapur and Kher. Aligarh is the seat.
Katehari, Milkipur, Karhal, Sheeshmau and Kundarki seats were held by the SP. Remaining 5 seats were won by NDA parties.
