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The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) state executive meeting in Lucknow on July 14 was held ostensibly to emphasise the urgency of course corrective strategies. It was also called to boost the morale of the BJP cadre in view of the upcoming 10 bypolls, and the 2027 Vidhan Sabha elections.
However, it also brought into open the factionalism within the BJP, and the sharp division between Chief Minister Aditynath and the party high command.
Held at the spacious Bhimrao Ambedkar Auditorium at Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University, this was the first such meeting of the Uttar Pradesh BJP after the saffron party’s poor performance in the Lok Sabha polls. This poor performance had virtually prevented Prime Minister Narendra Modi government from getting an absolute majority on its own.
This meeting was attended by approximately 2,500 BJP members, including BJP national president J. P. Nadda, several Union and State ministers, MPs, MLAs, MLCs, Lok Sabha candidates, block-level to booth level leaders.
The executive evidently sought to iron out differences in the government and the organisation over the causes of the party’s dismal performance in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls. The party had won only 33 of the 80 seats in UP, a loss of 29 seats from the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
The meeting was held a day after the pathetic performance of the BJP in the by polls in seven states where it won only 2 of the 13 seats. it conceded 10 to the I.N.D.I.A bloc, and one seat to an independent candidate.
The bypolls to the 10 vacant Assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh have not been held undoubtedly due to the saffron party being a divided house and the morale of the cadre being at an all time low.
Addressing the state executive, BJP national president Nadda elaborated on the various programmes of the Modi government and how the party cadre perhaps could not share the vision with the common voter. He urged them to maintain self-confidence and continue with introspection. “In the BJP, every leader is a worker first and every worker can be a leader,” Nadda maintained.
Emphasising the need for unity and a collective approach to overcome the setbacks, he highlighted the importance of addressing grassroots issues and strengthening the party’s presence at the local level. Calling attention to the saffron party’s commitment to the principle of “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas,Sabka Prayas ”, Nadda claimed that BJP’s strength was in its ideology, all-India presence and nurturing a dedicated cadre of workers as leaders.
Accusing the Congress party of undermining the Constitution and democratic values enshrined therein he said, “The Congress party talked of the Constitution extensively during the polls; it is however, essential to remind everyone who really undermined it.
“They (Congress) toppled elected governments 90 times. They talk about the Ram Temple but for the BJP the mandir is not just an election issue but a matter of faith.”
Chief Minister Adityanath however, didn’t mince words to declare that “overconfidence” kept the BJP from achieving the desired results in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in UP. Nevertheless, he expressed confidence regarding the ruling party’s victory in the 2027 Vidhan Sabha polls.
In damage control mode Adityanath claimed: “Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji’s leadership, we maintained constant pressure on the Opposition and achieved the desired success in UP, be it 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls or 2017 and 2022 Vidhan Sabha elections.
“The BJP managed to secure a similar percentage of votes even in 2024 as in previous elections. However, the shifting of votes and overconfidence hurt our expectations. As a result, the Opposition, which had been decimated in previous elections, has been able to do chest-thumping.”
Accusing the Opposition of dividing society along caste lines ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the CM asked party leaders and workers to remain vigilant against such divisions. He also stressed the need to utilise social media platforms to effectively counter such so-called propaganda of the Opposition.
Even BJP state president Bhupendra Chaudhary ascribed the party’s alarming underperformance mainly to I.N.D.I.A bloc’s false propaganda on the Constitution and the alleged threat to reservation.
Adityanath’s beta noir, deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya, on the other hand, underlined the party workers’ indifference due to their voices not being heard by the government and the administration as an important reason for the party's setback.
Amidst loud clapping and cheering Maurya emphasised that the organisation is greater than the government, has always been, and will continue to be so.
“The doors of my residence at 7 Kalidas Marg are open for everyone. I am a worker first and then the deputy chief minister,” he assured the party cadre.
The BJP’s state executive meeting comes a week after the BJP national general Secretary (organisation) B. L. Santhosh had conducted a series of meetings with the government and party officials to gather feedback on the Lok Sabha results.
Many BJP leaders admitted that the party workers were angry with the government and administration for ignoring them and not giving them the respect which they believe is due to them which has been reflected in the results.
Amidst whispers of CM Adityanath being made the scapegoat for the adverse UP results, even National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partners in UP have challenged his authority in recent weeks, ostensibly at the bidding of Yogi’s detractors at the centre. Mirzapur MP and Union Minister of commerce and industry Anupriya Patel recently charged CM Adityanath of discrimination the basis of caste.
It may be recalled that last week a video of the BJP MLA from Badlapur in Jaunpur, Ramesh Chandra Mishra, had gone viral in which he had claimed that the BJP was in a very bad state in UP and the central leadership of the party needed to immediately intervene else the situation would worsen.
“Our party is in a very bad state in UP… if immediate remedial steps are not taken then we will not be able to return to power in the 2027 Assembly election… The Samajwadi Party has taken up the issues concerning Pichda, Dalit and Alpsankhyak (PDA)… there is a lot of confusion among the electorate as our position is not very strong,” Mishra had said.
Similarly, former BJP minister and 4-time MLA from Patti in Pratapgarh Rajendra Pratap Singh popularly known as Moti Singh, speaking at a BJP event in Pratapgarh on July 12 said, “ I have no hesitation in saying that in 42 years of my political life, I could not imagine or see such kind of corruption at the tehsil and police station level…
“Today if one is travelling on a motorcycle and is caught for using one extra bulb then looters from the ‘power’ police station threaten to lodge a complaint and treat one like criminals.
“‘Hum apradh na karen aur apradhi ho gaye’ (We don’t commit crimes and yet become criminals). Instead of this party workers wearing saffron stoles should be respected and their issues should be heard.”
Needless to add, both BJP leaders retracted their statements on the eve of the state executive committee meeting held on July 14.
The tone and tenor of the UP BJP executive committee meeting suggests that the party is contemplating concrete steps to appease its demoralised workers as the party. The political resolution passed at the meeting refers to GYAN (Gharib, Yuva, Anndata-Kisan, Nari-Mahila) as the future focus of the party’s persuasive campaign to counter the I.N.D.I.A bloc’s narrative and lists many incentives for them, especially the youth.
Aware of the fact that the BJP can no longer bank on the Ram Mandir, free ration or hate campaign to bring them votes, the saffron party is in search of a concrete strategy to address the rising confidence of the Opposition and to ensure against further erosion of its power in the country’s politically most significant state.
The BJP’s victory in upcoming bypolls is crucial for the CM to counter the increasing challenge to his leadership. Neither he nor the saffron party can afford a reversal in the by-polls which may further build the momentum of the I.N.D.I.A bloc alliance ahead of the 2027 Vidhan Sabha polls. It may also spell deep trouble for Adityanath as CM.
The BJP’s performance in Uttar Pradesh in the Lok Sabha election was a major dent to the party that had been banking on the most politically crucial State to cross the majority mark (272) in the Parliament. The BJP-led NDA managed to win only 36 seats — BJP won 33, Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) got two and Apna Dal (Sonelal) secured one. It was 29 short of its 2019 win of 62 Lok Sabha seats from the State, and 38 short of its 2014 win of 71 seats.
