'24 polls in mind, BJP picks Jat leader Bhupendra Chaudhary as UP chief

Vibha Sharma

New Delhi, August 25

The BJP today set in motion its 2024 General Elections plan for Uttar Pradesh, the state that sends the largest number of MPs (80) to the Lok Sabha, by appointing Jat leader and minister Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary as state party president. Chaudhary replaces Swatantar Dev Singh, an OBC leader and also a minister in the Yogi Adityanath government who has already sent his resignation to party president JP Nadda.

In western Uttar Pradesh, the BJP faced considerable issues in the run-up to the 2022 Assembly elections amid the farmers’ agitation. Though the party did well in nearly 70 per cent of the constituencies, losing around 15 seats, the Samajwadi Party and ally Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) managed to present a formidable challenge.

As Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is from eastern UP, Chaudhary’s appointment will also help the BJP strike a regional balance in the high-stake state.

Though the BJP crossed the half-way mark with ease, 2022 saw an overall decrease in the number of seats in the Assembly. Compared to 312 in the 2017 Assembly elections, it got 255 of 403 seats this year. So far as the Lok Sabha is concerned, the Jat community holds a sway on over 20 of the 80 seats in the state.

Having been the west UP president, Chaudhary was deployed to assuage the community at the peak of farmers’ stir against the three central farm laws before the Assembly elections.