Ram Temple, ‘save Constitution’ churn campaign in U.P. Phase 2
Eight out of 80 Lok Sabha seats in the State go to the polls on April 26; many constituencies are witnessing a three-cornered contest with the BJP, BSP and INDIA allies Congress and SP in the fray; in 2019, the BJP had won seven of the eight seats
ith eight of the 80 Lok Sabha constituencies in Uttar Pradesh going to the polls on April 26 in the second phase of the Lok Sabha election, the campaign in India’s politically most crucial State peaked with top leaders leaving no stone unturned in reaching out to voters with contentious, polarising and longstanding issues taking centre stage.
The constituencies are Aligarh, Amroha, Ghaziabad, Baghpat, Bulandshahar, Meerut, Gautam Buddha Nagar and Mathura,
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, both of whom led the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s campaign in this phase, spoke of the Opposition declining the invitation to attend the Ram Temple consecration and “appeasement” politics of the Congress and the Samajwadi Party (SP).
Of the eight seats going to the polls, the BJP in 2019 emerged victorious in seven — Aligarh, Ghaziabad, Baghpat, Bulandshahr, Meerut, Mathura and Gautam Buddha Nagar, with the lone seat of Amroha won by Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate Kunwar Danish Ali. Mr. Ali is now
Wcontesting the seat on Congress ticket.
The campaign in Amroha witnessed rallies by Mr. Modi and a joint rally by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and SP president Akhilesh Yadav. Mr. Modi, while campaigning in Amroha, alleged that Mr. Ali had problems in chanting Bharat Mata Ki Jai.
“Will a person, who cannot accept Bharat Mata ki jai, look good in Indian Parliament? Should such a person be allowed entry into Indian Parliament?” he asked voters.
Three-corner contest
Mr. Ali is locked in a threecornered contest in the seat with BJP candidate Kanwar Singh Tanwar and Mujahid Hussain from the BSP. With a roughly 40% Muslim electorate, it needs to be seen which way the minority vote will tilt. In the Aligarh seat, BJP nominee Satish Gautam, the BSP’s Hitendra Kumar and the SP’s Brijendra Singh are ghting it out.
In another key western Uttar Pradesh seat of Baghpat, the BJP’s ally, the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) candidate Rajkumar Sangwan, is competing with Amarpal Sharma of the SP and Praveen Bainsal from the BSP.
In the Scheduled Caste (SC) reserved Bulandshahr seat, Bhola Singh of the BJP is taking on the Congress’s Shivram Valmiki and the BSP’s Girish Jatav. In Mathura, yet again the triangular contest between the BJP, the BSP and the Congress will witness actor Hema Malini taking on Mukesh
Dhangar of the Congress and Suresh Singh of the BSP.
The Prime Minister’s campaign focused on the Indian National Developmental, Inclusive Alliance [INDIA] bloc parties, and the Congress and the SP’s rejection of the Ram Temple consecration ceremony invitation, accusing them of disrespecting Lord Ram.
“The INDIA bloc parties rejected the invitation of Ram Temple consecration ceremony. They have no respect for the tradition of our nation. After 500 years, the dream of a grand Ram temple is fullled in
Ayodhya. When the people of the country built such a grand temple and forgiving all your [Congress] mistakes by inviting you for the consecration ceremony, these people insulted Lord Ram by rejecting the invitation,” said Mr. Modi in Amroha.
The INDIA bloc parties rejected the invitation of the Ram Temple. They have no respect for the tradition of our nation
Prime Minister
‘Alleges corruption’ Without naming Mr. Gandhi and Mr. Yadav, the Prime Minister alleged the duo carry with them a box of corruption, appeasement and dynasty.
Mr. Adityanath’s campaign was centred on the Congress’s alleged tactics of minority appeasement with the Chief Minister accusing the Congress manifesto of intending to implement ‘Sharia law’ in India and redistribute public wealth to specic sections.
The INDIA bloc leaders pushed the narrative of the 2024 Lok Sabha poll as an important election to save the country’s constitutional values and future of coming generations.
“This election is to save the future of the coming generation and the Constitution,” said Mr. Yadav in his election speech in Amroha.
The third key player in Uttar Pradesh, the BSP, pushed the cause of a separate western Uttar Pradesh State with party supremo and former four-time Chief Minister Mayawati promising to take concrete steps to make this demand a reality.
This [2024 Lok Sabha] election is to save the future of the coming generation and the Constitution
Samajwadi Party chief