After big UP win, Yogi Adityanath in Delhi today to meet PM Modi, Amit Shah

Yogi Adityanath will be in Delhi on Sunday to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah after the BJP’s big win in Uttar Pradesh. The ruling party – along with its allies – has won 273 of 403 assembly seats as it retains the state for a second straight term. In a new record, Yogi Adityanath is the first chief minister in 37 years to return to power again for a consecutive term.

The BJP has also retained Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa in a 4/5 win in the state polls. Suspense, however, remains over who will lead Goa and Uttarakhand.

The prime minister on Thursday had said the 2022 state election results have decided the outcome for 2024 (national election results), suggesting that it is an approval of the BJP’s development agenda over “pariwarwaad” (dynastic politics). The BJP has said it has been able to curb the lawlessness in UP, which was prevalant under the previous governments.

Yogi Adityanath, who was criticised over the handling of Covid second wave, among other issues, said on Thursday the poll results were a befitting reply to the rivals.

Akhilesh Yadav, the BJP’s top challenger, however, said the election results proved the BJP’s seats can be cut. In the last elections, the BJP, along with its allies, won 325 seats.

Yadav’s Samajwadi Party managed to get 111 seats with a 32 per cent vote share. The BJP got a 41 per cent vote share in the state.