Express News Service
LUCKNOW: Major political parties, including the ruling BJP, Samajwadi Party, Congress and BSP have welcomed the seven-phase schedule announced by the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Saturday for the upcoming assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, as big as the fifth largest country in the world and one of the most prominent and politically crucial states of the Hindi heartland.
Significantly, in the wake of the unprecedented surge in COVID-19 cases across the nation, the ECI has banned road shows, padyatras or physical rallies by political parties across the five poll-bound states till January 15. CEC Sushil Chandra said physical rallies, if allowed, would be as per COVID protocol after further evaluation of the situation.
While welcoming the poll schedule, UP CM Yogi Adityanath exuded confidence that the BJP would repeat its 2017 performance by winning 300 plus seats in the upcoming elections and forming the double engine government again in UP. “The BJP will be successful in forming the government again with overwhelming majority when results will be declared on March 10,” said the CM.
Senior BJP leader and UP cabinet minister Siddharthnath Singh said that the party would follow the ECI guidelines in letter and spirit. He claimed that the BJP would walk away with 60 per cent of the assembly seats and other parties would have to share the remaining 40 per cent. BJP leaders claimed that they had no problem in conducting digital campaign as even their grassroot workers had been in the practice of digital dialogue and communication for long. “We had gone digital during the first and the second wave of pandemic for intra-party interactions,” said party spokesman Rakesh Tripathi.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, too, welcomed the poll schedule assuring that his party would abide by the guidelines laid by the ECI. He claimed that the people of UP were waiting for a change in dispensation bidding farewell to the BJP in 2022. “These dates will spell a major change in UP. However, the election commission should get strict with the ruling BJP and ensure that they follow the guidelines,” he said.
Just before the announcement of the poll schedule, the SP chief had said that if physical rallies would be banned, then the ECI should provide us the funds to manage the digital infrastructure. “The BJP has had a digital infrastructure for a long time, unlike other political parties. We will request the Election Commission to strengthen the digital platforms of other parties so that they can come in a position to compete with BJP. In case there is a need for digital rallies, we need to ensure that other parties are also having good digital infrastructure,” said Akhilesh Yadav. He also urged the ECI to be watchful of ‘hate speeches’ delivered by BJP leaders.
Similarly, the BSP, which had been waiting the party chief Mayawati to hold rallies with the announcement of the poll schedule, would feel restricted in the wake of the new guidelines. However, BSP leader Dharamveer said that the party waswell prepared to fight the upcoming polls. “We will comply with the ECI guidelines strictly as we have seen the dance of death and destruction during the second wave of the pandemic,” said the BSP leader.
Congress UP unit chief Ajay Kumar Lallu also claimed that his party was all prepared to give a tough fight to the rivals in battleground UP. “We will follow all the guidelines and fight the polls in a better way. We are fully hopeful offorming the next government in UP,” said Lallu.
