Lucknow, Oct 28 (IANS) Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Ministers Brajesh Pathak and Keshav Prasad Maurya, on Wednesday defended the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) against allegations of electoral malpractice, asserting that the party was winning elections because of better preparations and its commitment to transparency and honesty.
Speaking with reporters, Pathak alleged that the Samajwadi Party (SP) and other INDIA Bloc Opposition parties raised questions about electoral processes to save face after losing elections.
Deputy CM Maurya said the BJP had repeated its previous performance in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council elections but had expected to win more seats.
He said the party would review the results, particularly in constituencies where the SP had managed to win despite the BJP’s expectations, and work to improve its performance in future elections.
“The Bharatiya Janata Party has repeated its previous performance. We were expecting to win more seats, but we could not secure as many seats as anticipated,” Maurya said.
He added that the party would analyse the results and assess the constituencies where the SP had opened its account. Maurya also said Union Home Minister Amit Shah was scheduled to visit Uttar Pradesh on October 30, 2026.
Meanwhile, Congress spokesperson Surendra Rajput accused the BJP of electoral theft, rigging and misuse of government machinery during the Legislative Council elections. He alleged that the party had resorted to money and muscle power when it could not win elections through public support.
“The way the BJP engages in electoral theft, rigging, and other malpractices was evident in the Legislative Council elections,” Rajput alleged.
He further claimed that the police and administrative machinery were being misused to undermine candidates of the INDIA Bloc and the SP. Rajput also alleged collusion between the BJP and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, warning that the public would respond to what he described as electoral misconduct.
The political exchange came ahead of the results of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council elections for the Teachers’ and Graduates’ constituencies in Agra, where the SP and the BJP shared the honours.
In the Agra Division Teachers’ constituency, SP candidate Akash Agarwal won for the second consecutive time. Returning Officer Narendra Pratap handed him the certificate of victory on Wednesday. The administration, however, had not immediately released the final official vote count.
Speaking to IANS after his victory, Agarwal said the result reflected the trust placed in him by teachers across the division.
“This result reflects the votes of teachers across all 12 districts. They trusted me over the other candidates, believing that I would work for their welfare,” he said.
In the Agra Division Graduates’ constituency, BJP candidate Manvendra Pratap Singh, popularly known as ‘Guruji’, retained his seat by defeating SP candidate Shashank Yadav. Singh attributed his victory to the hard work of the party’s grassroots workers and the performance of the government.
–IANS
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