BJP's BL Maurya set to win UP legislative council bypoll unopposed

Lucknow: BJP's MLC candidate Bahoran Lal Maurya is set to be elected unopposed in the bypoll to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council.

Maurya filed his nomination for the July 12 election on Tuesday in the presence of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Deputy CM Brajesh Pathak and senior party leaders.

Till the end of the nomination time at 3 pm on Tuesday, only BL Maurya has filed his papers, Vidhan Sabha Secretary Pradip Dubey told PTI.

Adityanath congratulated Maurya as the Samajwadi Party (SP) has not announced any candidate for the council seat.

"Congratulations to the BJP nominee. Good wishes for your victory," he posted in Hindi on X.

Maurya told PTI that he would work towards the successful implementation of the Centre's and Uttar Pradesh government's schemes. He said he would also focus on exposing the falsehoods spread by the opposition during the Lok Sabha elections.

SP chief spokesman and MLC Rajendra Chaudhary told PTI that the party has decided not to contest the poll for the state's upper house. When asked for the reason, he did not provide a specific answer.

Maurya was elected to the Legislative Assembly from the Bhojipura constituency twice in 1996 and 2017.

In the 2022 Legislative Assembly elections, he lost the seat to SP's Sharzil Islam by a margin of over 9,400 votes.

The bypoll was necessitated by the resignation of SP MLC Swami Prasad Maurya on February 20.

Currently, the ruling BJP and its allies have an overwhelming number in the 100-member council.

MLAs vote for this poll for the council seat.

The BJP at present has 251 MLAs. Its ally, Apna Dal (Sonelal) has 13 Legislators, RLD has eight, Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) has six and Nishad Party has five MLAs.

The SP currently has 105 members in the state assembly and its INDIA bloc partner Congress has two MLAs.

In the 100-member council, the BJP alone has 78 legislators. The SP has 10 MLCs.

Ruling coalition partners -- Apna Dal (Sonelal), NISHAD Party, Jansatta Dal party of Raja Bhaiya and SBSP have one seat -- and Lok Tantrik Dal has one member.

The polls for this seat of the council are scheduled on July 12. Nomination papers would be scrutinised on July 3 and can be withdrawn till July 5.