A second minister, Dara Singh Chauhan, has quit Yogi Adityanath's cabinet in Uttar Pradesh, continuing a flurry of exits that started with Swami Prasad Maurya's shock resignation yesterday. This is the second OBC (Other Backward Class) leader to quit team Yogi just before the Uttar Pradesh election next month.
In a huge blow to the BJP as it seeks re-election in India's most politically vital state, two ministers and four MLAs have quit so far and are set to join the Samajwadi Party of Akhilesh Yadav.
Swami Prasad Maurya, whose resignation from Yogi Adityanath's cabinet has set off a flurry of exits, today said he "hasn't quit the BJP or joined the Samajwadi Party" yet.
"I have only quit as a minister. I will quit the BJP soon. For now, I am not joining the Samajwadi Party," Swami Prasad Maurya told NDTV today, teasing a big reveal on Friday.
"I have rejected the BJP...there is no question of going back," he qualified in the same breath.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar on Tuesday said his party would contest the state elections in Uttar Pradesh as part of the Samajwadi Party-led alliance. He also said 13 members of the Legislative Assembly in Uttar Pradesh will be joining the Samajwadi Party.
Talking to reporters, Mr Pawar said people of Uttar Pradesh are looking for parivartan (change) in the northern state, adding it will happen.
In a big jolt to the BJP and Yogi Adityanath just before the Uttar Pradesh election, senior leader Swami Prasad Maurya Tuesday quit as minister and joined rival Samajwadi Party of Akhilesh Yadav. Moments after he posted his resignation letter on Twitter, another MLA, Roshan Lal Verma, announced his resignation.
Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati will not contest the upcoming assembly election in the state, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader said.
"Former Chief Minister Mayawati and I will not contest the Assembly elections," BSP MP Satish Chandra Misra said.
Here are the Live updates on Assembly Election 2022:
Uttar Pradesh Polls 2022: Amid BJP Crisis, Yogi Adityanath Could Have New Constituency: AyodhyaThe BJP, facing a rebellion in the ranks with exit of six leaders over the last two days in Uttar Pradesh, is considering fielding Yogi Adityanath from Ayodhya in the assembly polls, say sources. PM Modi needs to sign off on it, say sources.
Dehradun District Magistrate R Rajesh Kumar on Wednesday instructed the concerned officials to monitor the expenditure of political parties and candidates during an inspection of the media certification and monitoring room set up in Vikas Bhavan premises ahead of 2022 state assembly polls.
The District Election Officer / District Magistrate said that he has kept the MCMC room effective 24x7 and keeping a close watch on the election activities, monitoring the political activities going on in print, electronic media and social media and for timely effective exchange of reports. Instructions have been given to the Assistant Nodal officer Badri Chandra and the concerned personnel present.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) released its third list of candidates for the upcoming Goa Assembly Elections on Wednesday.
AAP leader Atishi tweeted the list of five candidates. "Happy to announce the third list of candidates for Goa Assembly elections in February 2022! .@AamAadmiParty is all geared up to bring political change in Goa! Best of luck to all the candidates!", she tweeted.
According to the list, Valmiki Naik will contest from Panjim, Surel Tilve from Ponda, Gurudas Yesu Naik to contest from Marcaim, Pundalik Dhargarkar from Prenem and Vishnu Naik from Siolim.
Swami Prasad Maurya: Final Nail In BJP Coffin, Wait Till Friday - UP Minister Who Quit Cabinet'All will be revealed on January 14 (Friday)' - influential OBC leader Swami Prasad Maurya's response to furious speculation surrounding his political future after he quit the BJP and the Yogi Adityanath government ahead of polls in Feb-March.
Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu today called Arvind Kejriwal a "political tourist" while attacking the 10-point "Punjab Model" released by the Aam Aadmi Party national convenor earlier in the day. "A list of 10 pointers written by people sitting in Delhi with zero knowledge of Punjab can never be Punjab Model," Mr Sidhu said in a tweet today.
The 10 point model, essentially a pre-election manifesto, released by Arvind Kejriwal in a press conference in Mohali today included generating employment for youth, taking action on the drug menace in the state, providing free electricity up to 300 units, action in sacrilege cases, Rs 1,000 monthly allowance for women, among others.
Yogi Adityanath, facing a rebellion in the ranks with exit of six leaders over the last two days - is likely to contest from Ayodhya, say sources. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is to sign off on the proposal, the sources add.
Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav tweeted Wednesday after Dara Singh Chauhan, an influential OBC (Other Backward Classes) leader, became the second minister from poll-bound Uttar Pradesh to quit the ruling BJP and the Yogi Adityanath government in less than 48 hours.
"Hearty welcome and greetings to Dara Singh Chauhan ji, the relentless fighter of the struggle for 'social justice'! The SP and its allies will unite and take the movement of equality and equality to the extreme... Eliminate discrimination! This is our collective resolve!" Mr Yadav wrote.
Swami Prasad Maurya, who quit the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh and is set to exit the BJP, now faces arrest over a hate speech he allegedly made in 2014. A warrant for his arrest has been put out in Sultanpur, a day after his resignation.
Congress leader Manish Tewari on Wednesday attacked Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, saying the state requires a leader who has solutions to challenges and takes tough decisions.
"Punjab requires a CM who has solutions to Punjab's challenges, capacity to take tough decisions. Punjab needs serious people whose politics is not Social Engineering, Entertainment, Freebies and not regime favourites rejected by people in successive elections," Mr Tewari said on Twitter.
Unveiling his party's "Punjab Model" ahead of assembly polls, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday promised justice in sacrilege cases, jobs to youth, corruption-free governance, and asserted that people want to bring his party to power to break the friendly "partnership" between the Badals and the Congress.
The Punjab model will have a 10-point agenda which will include providing free power to people up to 300 units per billing cycle and controlling the drug menace, he said.
The Delhi chief minister said that with the announcement of polls, people are happy that they have got an opportunity to bring a change.
Avtar Singh Bhadana on Wednesday severed ties with the Congress and joined the Jayant Chaudhary-led Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) ahead of assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh. The four-time Lok Sabha MP from Faridabad, Haryana will be fielded by the RLD from Jewar assembly constituency in Gautam Buddh Nagar district of Uttar Pradesh, party sources told PTI.
Mr Chaudhary on Wednesday took to Twitter to announce the 64-year-old Mr Bhadana's entry into his party RLD and shared their pictures together.
A bed-ridden Uttar Pradesh BJP MLA - among five lawmakers who quit the ruling party yesterday ahead of elections next month - has issued a statement after his daughter alleged he had been 'kidnapped' by his brother and 'forced' to join the Samajwadi Party.
Vinay Shakya is the BJP MLA from Bidhuna in UP's Auraiya district. He and his brother, Devesh Shakya, are close to heavyweight OBC leader and minister Swami Prasad Maurya, whose jump to the opposition on Tuesday, with that of four legislators who quit the party, made headlines.
The Congress may have kept any decision on a Chief Minister candidate in Punjab at bay ahead of elections but its two top faces, Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and state Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu are not having it.
As Navjot Sidhu said yesterday that "the people of Punjab" will pick the new Chief Minister, as opposed to the party high command, Mr Channi dropped a big hint of his own.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday said the state's people consider his party as an alternative to the BJP and in this assembly polls, they will wipe out the saffron party.
He also alleged that the BJP has betrayed farmers and youths, while prices of diesel, petrol and fertilisers have increased manifold during its regime.
The number of registered unrecognised political parties increased more than twice between 2010 and 2021 and disproportionately during the year of parliamentary elections, poll rights group Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) said.
Either newly registered parties or those which have not secured enough percentage of votes in assembly or general elections to become a state party, or those which have never contested elections since being registered are considered unrecognised parties.
