In the local body elections in Uttar Pradesh, BJP clinched a massive victory. The results of the local body election in UP comes as a big setback for Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party. In the zila panchayat chairperson election, 75 seats were at stake. Such local body elections form an important category of elections in India.  BJP won 67 seats in the election. Samajwadi party led by Mr Yadav party won only five seats. Jansatta Dal, Rashtriya Lok Dal, and an independent candidate won a seat each.

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In the same election in 2016, Mr Yadav-led Samajwadi party took 60 of the 75 seats. Political experts asserted that the local body polls are unlikely to be any indicator of which direction the wind will blow in the assembly election next year. The 2022 assembly election will serve as an ultimate test for Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath of BJP.

On Saturday, Samajwadi Party workers held a street protest alleging rigging in the local body election in Prayagraj, formerly Allahabad. They were met with police baton charge. On the win, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted, “The glorious victory of BJP in the UP District Panchayat elections is the blessing given by the people for development, public service and rule of law. The credit for this goes to the policies of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and the tireless hard work of the party workers.”

UP BJP Chief Swatantra Dev Singh stated, “The BJP has won 67 out of 75 district panchayat chairperson seats. We will win 2022 assembly elections also.”

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Among the winners, twenty-one BJP candidates & one from Samajwadi Party got elected unopposed. Uttar Pradesh has around 3,000 zila panchayat members. This election was to choose the chairpersons of Zila Parishads for the state’s 75 districts.

Bahujan Samaj Party led by Mayawati, did not fight the local body polls.With 11 MLAs expelled, & 4 UP chiefs in 3 years, Mayawati’s BSP appears to be imploding.

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In local body elections in UP, leaders getting elected unopposed is not new. Half of the 60 seats that Samajwadi Party won in the zila panchayat chairperson polls were elected unopposed in 2016. Akhilesh Yadav was the then Chief Minister of UP. After one year, BJP swept the state in the assembly election.