Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who is on a two-day visit to the national capital, met senior BJP leader and Union minister Amit Shah today and likely to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday. Adityanath’s visit comes the day after Jitin Prasada, a former Congress leader who comes from a well-known Brahmin family of Uttar Pradesh, left the party to join BJP.
Sources also said, Adityanath will also be meeting BJP chief JP Nadda during his two-day visit.
The visit is assumed to be politically significant as Uttar Pradesh will be going into polls in 2022 and the party is expected to take all steps necessary to hold the fort in the state.
Cabinet reshuffle likely in Uttar Pradesh
Ahead of the 2022 Assembly elections, there is speculation that the Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in the Uttar Pradesh will reshuffle its cabinet soon.
With elections due in 2022, the BJP has decided to strengthen the party in the state by seeking feedback from its leaders in the wake of outcome of panchayat polls and the murmurs from some sections over handling of the COVID-19 situation.
The party has also decided to prepare a strategy based on feedback received from its state leaders and ministers in the Yogi Adityanath government, strengthen the image of the state government and resolve the issues in the state.
These efforts are also aimed at improving the coordination between the party and the government, BJP national general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh arrived in Lucknow earlier this week and held one-on-one meetings with some of the ministers and leaders in the poll-bound state. Santhosh was accompanied by Radha Mohan Singh.
Many of these leaders had flagged issues like COVID-19 handling, disenchantment among people and lack of coordination between government and party leaders, among others.
‘I left Congress as there is a rising disconnect between party and people’
Prasada on Thursday said he left the Congress not because of any individual or for any post, but due to the “rising disconnect” between the party and the people of Uttar Pradesh.
“I left the Congress not due to any individual or for any post. The reason I left the Congress was because there is a rising disconnect between the party and the people. And that is the reason, its vote share is shrinking in Uttar Pradesh and there is no plan to revive the party,” Prasada told PTI Thursday.
Underlining that his decision to join the BJP was taken after discussions and deliberations, he said he wants to serve his people, his state and the nation.
He could not protect his people’s interests while being in the Congress, he said, asserting the BJP is the only institutionalised national party in the county.
(With inputs from agencies)
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