Beyond exit polls: Both the SP, BJP camps confident of win

Lucknow: The exit polls have indicated the BJP’s lead. After the EVM results are out on Thursday, it will be decided to what extent the exit polls convert into exact results.

From the perspective of political parties, all tried their best to reach the voters and win the elections. Party strategists did not leave any stone unturned to balance equations in ticket distribution. In the elections to the 403-member assembly, the BJP contested 92 percent seats.

The remaining eight percent of seats were given to the quota of allies. Out of which Sanjay Nishad-led Nishad Party got 16 seats while Anupriya Patel-led Apna Dal (S) contested on 17 seats.

Rajendra Kumar Maurya was fielded from BJP’s side after Apna Dal (S) decided not to field any candidate for Pratapgarh Sadar seat. Since then the number of declared candidates of BJP has reached 370. Six candidates of Nishad Party contested from BJP’s Lotus symbol.

Yogi Adityanath, who broke the no-visit jinx of the CM in Noida, wants to repeat the 25-yr-old history by forming the government again in the state, when Mayawati returned to power after being ousted from power in the nineties. Whereas, the SP contested 86 percent of the seats i.e. 348 seats with its symbol cycle, giving 55 seats to the alliance partners.

The main parties with which Akhilesh Yadav’s party formed an alliance were, Rashtriya Lok Dal, Progressive Samajwadi Party, Mahan Dal, National Democratic Party, Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party, Apna Dal (Communist), Gondwana Party.

Of these, Rashtriya Lok Dal got 33, SBSP 8 and Apna Dal (Kameravadi) got four seats. However, Pallavi Patel of Apna Dal (Kameravadi) entered the fray from Sirathu seat on the SP symbol. PSPL National President Shivpal Singh Yadav contested from Jaswantnagar seat.

Mahan Dal’s national president Keshavdev Maurya’s wife Suman contested from Farrukhabad and her son Chandra Prakash contested from Bilsi. Rastriya Janvadi Party’s vice-president Haseeb Hasan was fielded from the Utraula seat on SP’s cycle symbol.