There was a lot at stake…Why did Yogi’s stature increase further with BJP’s victory in Maharashtra and UP by-elections?

New Delhi : The picture of the results of the assembly elections of Maharashtra and Jharkhand as well as the by-elections held on 9 assembly seats of UP is gradually becoming clear. According to the trends, the BJP-led grand alliance seems to be blowing a storm in Maharashtra. The ruling coalition seems to be scoring a double century in the state with 288 seats. In political terms, the BJP-led NDA is ahead by 7-2 in the by-elections on 9 assembly seats of Uttar Pradesh, the largest state. The credibility of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was at stake in the by-election. On the other hand, BJP has suffered a huge setback in Jharkhand and the Congress-JMM-RJD alliance is moving towards a landslide victory. By-elections were also held on 46 assembly and 2 Lok Sabha seats in 15 states, but Yogi Adityanath had conducted vigorous election campaign in Maharashtra, Jharkhand as well as UP. If these trends translate into results, then this is going to further enhance the stature of the UP CM who has transformed into a strong leader of BJP. he/she had conducted an aggressive election campaign and the entire election had, in a way, centered on his/her slogan ‘Batenge to Katenge’.Yogi Adityanath dominates!
Yogi Adityanath’s credibility was directly at stake in the by-elections on 9 assembly seats of UP. If BJP’s performance here had been poor, it would have had a direct impact on its political future. During the first term of Yogi Adityanath as CM and now also during the second term, there are reports coming from time to time that the UP BJP is divided. On one side there are Yogis and on the other side some voices keep becoming vocal against him/her. The opposition and especially Akhilesh Yadav also leave no opportunity to fuel the alleged factionalism within the BJP and speculations about a ‘Delhi vs Lucknow’ fight. Obviously, losing the elections at home would directly mean weakening of Yogi Adityanath. Despite so much at stake, Yogi not only took charge of the campaign in the UP by-elections, but despite his/her busy schedule, also campaigned vigorously for the party in Maharashtra and Jharkhand.

Yogi’s massive campaign
Yogi Adityanath campaigned extensively in 13 days from November 5 to November 18 and held 37 rallies in Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh. Apart from this, 2 roadshows were also done. In Maharashtra, he/she held 11 rallies in favor of Mahayuti. 13 rallies in Jharkhand within 4 days and 13 rallies and 2 roadshows in 5 days for by-elections on 9 seats in UP. Yogi held 2 rallies each in Phulpur, Majhwan, Khair and Katehri. One roadshow and one rally each in Ghaziabad and Sisamau. he/she also held one rally each in Kundarki, Karhal and Meerapur.

Yogi’s slogan ‘Batenge to Katenge’ remained prevalent throughout the elections.
Be it UP or Maharashtra or Jharkhand…Yogi Adityanath’s slogan ‘Batenge to Katenge’ remained prevalent throughout the elections. Remained the focal point of the entire election. Yogi Adityanath had raised this slogan to polarize Hindu votes and to cut the caste census stakes of the opposition, especially Congress. his/her slogan seems to be proving to be a super hit in the elections. In Maharashtra, All India Ulema Board had openly appealed to vote in favor of Mahavikas Aghadi. Maulana Sajjad Nomani of All India Muslim Personal Law Board appealed to Muslims to vote in favor of MVA. BJP promoted it as ‘Vote Jihad’. Such appeals to Muslims to vote in favor of a particular party or alliance increased the appeal of Yogi Adityanath’s ‘Bantenge to Katenge’ slogan. Somewhere, this led to polarization of votes and Mahayuti got direct benefit from it. The credit for Mahayuti’s victory in Maharashtra will definitely go to schemes like Ladki Behna and Yogi Adityanath’s aggressive election campaign along with other factors.

When Yogi caught hold of Kharge’s statement
Yogi Adityanath not only campaigned aggressively on the slogans of ‘Batenge to Katenge’, ‘Ek hain to nek hain, Ek hain to safe hain’ but also seized upon a statement of Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge. Kharge had mentioned in some election rallies how his/her mother and several family members were killed in riots when he/she was young. Yogi seized Kharge’s statement and challenged him/her to tell the whole truth about who had killed his/her family members. he/she said in his/her rallies that Kharge ji was not able to muster enough courage to tell that his/her family members were killed by the Razakars of the Nizam of Hyderabad.

Yogi had a lot at stake in the UP by-elections.
Even in the UP by-elections, Yogi was seen in full rage. he/she himself took charge from the selection of candidates to the election campaign because his/her credibility and his/her political future were at stake. Out of 9 seats, BJP is ahead on 6 seats and ally RLD is ahead on 1 seat while Samajwadi Party is ahead on only 2 seats. Out of these 9, only 3 seats were with BJP which is now going to increase to 6.

Why was Yogi’s slogan not a hit in Jharkhand?
Well, the question is obvious that if ‘Batenge to Katenge’ was a hit in Maharashtra then why was its impact not seen in Jharkhand? Why did BJP lose there? After all, why the magic of Yogi Adityanath could not work there? There are many factors in the victory of India Alliance in Jharkhand. The annual honorarium of Rs 12,000 given to women under the ‘Maiya Samman Yojana’ became a game changer in Jharkhand in the same way as the Ladki Behna Yojana in Maharashtra. Apart from this, Hemant Soren going to jail, leaving the post of Chief Minister, coming out of jail and becoming CM again and Champai Soren, who was made CM in his/her absence, changed sides in favor of BJP… all these things, somewhere, Jharkhand Created sympathy among the public in favor of Mukti Morcha. In Jharkhand, no Maulana Nomani or any Muslim organization made a public appeal to vote in favor of any alliance, which happened in Maharashtra. Therefore, Yogi Adityanath’s slogan ‘Bantenge to Katenge’ did not prove to be as effective as it was in Maharashtra.