Uttar Pradesh: Last vote cast, wait begins for results on Thursday

Tribune News Service

Vibha Sharma
New Delhi, March 7

With the last vote being cast, the seven-phase elections to Uttar Pradesh came to an end today with exit polls taking over the discourse till the results of the 403-member Assembly on Thursday. The high-stake elections, which started amid the Omicron wave, moving through various ups and downs, saw the Akhilesh Yadav-led coalition putting up a spirited fight against the collective might of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Home Minister Amit Shah, and top guns of the BJP. 

However, some trends remained constant, like the word “lekin” (but) dominating the discourse, for example in the oft-repeated statement: “Akhilesh Yadav is doing well, ‘lekin’ (but)…” 

 The fact is despite all the talk of development and double-engine government, ‘Hindutva’ was an important factor for saffron supporters in a “direct, highly polarised fight” between Adityanath and Akhilesh across the length and breadth and several sitting BJP  legislators facing perceptible anger, including in the PM’s constituency Varanasi.  

Chief Minister Adityanth battled a strong anti-incumbency fueled by issues like anger against ‘dummy/ineffective’ MLAs, unemployment, inflation, stray cattle, etc. The exit of OBC leaders like Swami Prasad Maurya and Dara Singh Chauhan at the eve of the elections did not help, resulting in the party changing its plan to replace several sitting MLAs and making it more vulnerable to the anti-incumbency factor.

Keeping the power centralised also did not help Adityanath. However, led by PM Modi, the BJP tackled Akhilesh and his party-led coalition with allegations of “being pro-mafia and pro-terrorists” though its biggest strength was free rations—‘roti, kapda makaan’—provide by central government, especially during and post-Covid. “Bahut madat ki hai (they have helped a lot), said voters, even who suffered during the Covid-19 lock-down or were upset due to lack of jobs.

If the BJP doew well, it will be courtesy the popularity of the Prime Minister and carefully constructed image of Adityanath as the “tough bulldozer Baba who did not spare anyone and the law and order situation” under him. 

If the Samajwadi Party does better than 2017, the credit muct go to Akhilesh Yadav and the rainbow alliance he stitched with the Rashtriya Lok Dal, Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party, Mahan Dal, Pragatisheel Samaj Party (Lohia) and Janvadi Party (Socialist), encompassing non-Yadav OBCs, SCs, Brahmins, beyond his traditional Muslim-Yadav vote-base.

Learning from the 2017 Assembly and 2019 Lok Sabha, Akhilesh kept away from both the Congress and the BSP. Many supporters believed the name of the SP candidate did not matter in the direct fight with the BJP. So far as the rest in the fray are concerned, a “silent Mayawati” confused BSP voters and so did the buzz of a possible post-poll alliance scenario with the BJP. Meanwhile, the Congress’ campaign created buzz and so did general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra but whether that is good enough to translate into some seats remains to be seen.

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