The ruling Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh bagged 60 out of 74 zilla panchayat chairman posts.
The SP candidates were elected in 24 districts in addition to the 36 districts where its candidates won unopposed. Out of the 74 districts, 44 were won by women candidates. The BSP claimed four chairman posts and the Congress and the Rashtriya Lok Dal got one each.
“Ignoring the baseless allegations the Opposition levelled against Akhilesh Yadav, the SP’s win displays the faith people have in his leadership. People have given approval to Mr. Yadav’s development agenda,” SP spokesperson and Cabinet Minister Rajendra Chaudhary said.
The BJP was embarrassed in Varanasi as SP candidate Aparajita Sonkar defeated the BJP-Apna Dal combine candidate Amit Kumar Sonkar in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s constituency. In Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi’s constituency, Amethi too, the SP tasted victory. The party’s candidate was elected unopposed after the Congress candidate Krishna Chaurasiya withdrew nomination, embarrassing the party.
