While the BJP left no stone unturned in canvassing for its candidates in two Samajwadi Party-favored seats, the by-poll results have once again proved that with its grass-root level hard work and commitment, it can devastate even strong holds of age old bigwigs.

Just months after the state elections setback, the by-elections for the Rampur and Azamgarh Lok Sabha seats came as a body blow to Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party (SP). While the BJP’s Dinesh Lal Yadav ‘Nirahua’ won the Azamgarh seat by over 8,000 votes, Ghanshyam Singh Lodhi won Rampur by over 42,000.

The bypolls were necessitated due to the resignations of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and party leader Azam Khan from Azamgarh and Rampur seats, respectively after their victory in the recent Uttar Pradesh assembly elections. After leading initially, the SP candidates in both the seats trailed as the counting of votes progressed and finally they lost much to the surprise of political Pundits and SP bigwigs.

The BJP’s victory in the SP’s stronghold also shows the saffron party’s growing popularity after a comfortable victory in the February-March state polls. For the main opposition party, the result reflects its losing grip over Muslims and Yadavs, its “MY” citadel.

Both seats were prestigious strongholds of the SP for more than a decade. But BJP’s victories represent fundamental changes in the electoral mindset and have numerous socio-political implications.

The BJP increased its vote share by a whopping 15 per cent from March 2022 assembly elections. This is in line with historical data that the BJP always does better in general elections than in assembly elections.

The BJP’s victory in the SP bastions also shows the saffron party’s growing popularity after a comfortable victory in the February-March state polls.

Though the outcome of the by polls in the politically significant state will not make much of a difference in the numerical strength of the parties in the Lok Sabha, the fall of bastions of SP is considered important from the point of view of the 2024 general elections.

The BJP already has 62 out of the total 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh. The by poll victory has increased the party’s tally to 64, while the count of Akhilesh Yadav’s party has come down to three from five.

There has been a paradigm shift in Uttar Pradesh after 2014. The BJP government at the Centre and in the state has been working for development without any bias. There were a few sections of society who used to trust BJP a little less, however, after seeing the development by the BJP government, all sections have realized that the BJP government works for everyone.

Earlier there were some political parties in the state who used to act like contractors of votes of some specific communities, however, people have rejected such parties. The BJP’s win in the by polls is the result of unbiased implementation of government schemes.

Speaking about the victory, BJP chief JP Nadda stated, “BJP’s historic victory in by-poll in UP’s Rampur & Azamgarh shows the trust of people in PM Modi & CM Yogi govt’s pro-poor policies. I express my gratitude to the people of the state. In last election, SP won, but BJP won on these seats this time.”

While pointing out the reasons for BJP’s recent triumph in UP, JP Nadda said, “Women’s safety has increased, strict action is being taken against criminals & rule of law has been established in the state. Goons are now behind the bars while development schemes are reaching every household.”

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