Assembly Election 2022 Updates: Akhilesh Yadav to contest from Karhal, Shivpal from Jaswant Nagar

Samajwadi Party (SP) released the list of 159 candidates for the forthcoming elections in the state on Monday. However, the list does not include the name of Swami Prasad Maurya's son Utkrisht Maurya. READ MORE

Akhilesh Yadav will be contesting the upcoming Uttar Pradesh election from family bastion Mainpuri's Karhal seat and uncle Shivpal from Jaswant Nagar. READ MORE

The Samajwadi Party has released its first list of candidates for Uttar Pradesh Election 2022. CHECK FULL LIST HERE

Shivpal Singh Yadav will contest the assembly election from Jaswant Nagar in Uttar Pradesh as a candidate of the Samajwadi Party-Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohia) alliance.

The Samajwadi Party has announced that party president Akhilesh Yadav will contest polls from Manipuri's Karhal seat. 

The chief priest of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on Monday said it is good that Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath is not contesting the state Assembly polls from this seat as he would have faced a lot of opposition. Acharya Satyendra Das said he had earlier suggested that Adityanath should contest from Gorakhpur as people whose houses and shops were demolished here due to infrastructure projects in the wake of the construction of the temple were opposing him. "It's good that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is not contesting from here. I had suggested it earlier and advised that it will be better that he contest from any seat of Gorakhpur," said Das, who is the chief priest of the makeshift Ram Lalla temple, which is being replaced by a grand temple. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

AAP candidate Joginder Singh for Miranpur assembly seat allegedly poured kerosene oil over his clothes to immolate himself before the district collectorate office here on Monday over the rejection of his poll nomination paper by the returning officer, police said. The police, however, managed to foil his alleged suicide bid by overpowering him and stopping him from lighting the matchstick, they said. After his failed suicide bid, Singh sat on a dharna before the district magistrate's office, alleging that he was not given an opportunity to rectify his mistake in filling his nomination paper. Official sources said Singh's nomination paper was rejected by Returning Officer Jayender Kumar due to some crucial omissions in filling it. Singh, an ex-serviceman, had filed his papers as Aam Aadmi Party candidate for the Miranpur (Meerapur) assembly seat in the Muzaffarnagar district.

Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Monday claimed he had got a message from Pakistan to reinstate Navjot Singh Sidhu in his government because he was an old friend of their prime minister. Singh, who has floated a new party after leaving Congress and is fighting Punjab assembly polls in an alliance with BJP, said he was told that Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan will be grateful if he can keep Sidhu in the government. "After I dropped Navjot Sidhu from my government, I got a message from Pakistan that he is an old friend of their prime minister and he would be grateful if you can keep him in the government. If he (Sidhu) doesn't work, then you can remove him," Singh said here during a press conference at BJP headquarters to announce a seat-sharing arrangement. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

The BJP on Monday slammed Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav for his reported comments that China is India's real enemy while Pakistan is a "political enemy" which is targeted by the ruling party for "vote politics". BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said this shows Yadav's mindset and he should tender an apology to the country for the comments which show his "love" for Pakistan. What the SP president has said is very unfortunate and disappointing, he said.

Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait has warned farmers from attempts to "polarise" society and divert their attention by vested interests who will rake up "Hindu-Muslim" issues. Tikait who was speaking to media persons while attending a private function near Iglas on Sunday night also said that farmers are" fully conscious" of the critical importance of their choice in the forthcoming assembly elections and do not need any prompting. "In the next few weeks Hindu-Muslim and Jinnah will be regular topics in the political discourse and you should be wary of such distractions," the BKU leader said. Making a cryptic remark, he said "Hindu-Muslim and Jinnah are going to be official guests in UP till March 15." 

The chief priest of the Ram temple here on Monday said it is good that Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath is not contesting the state Assembly polls from this seat as he would have faced a lot of opposition. Acharya Satyendra Das said he had earlier suggested that Adityanath should contest from Gorakhpur as people whose houses and shops were demolished here due to infrastructure projects in the wake of the construction of the temple were opposing him. "It's good that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is not contesting from here. I had suggested it earlier and advised that it will be better that he contest from any seat of Gorakhpur," said Das, who is the chief priest of the makeshift Ram Lalla temple, which is being replaced by a grand temple.

The Congress in Goa on Monday accused the Election Commission of India of following two separate Covid protocol yardsticks in the poll-bound states of Uttar Pradesh and Goa. Speaking at a meeting of party workers in the Pernem Assembly constituency, All India Congress Committee secretary in-charge of Goa Dinesh Gundu Rao said that while Union Home Minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Amit Shah was being allowed to hold large padayatras with 5,000 supporters in tow, poll officials in Goa had been partisan in cracking down on even small meetings conducted by the Congress party in the coastal state. "Big meetings cannot be held because of corona. There are guidelines and whenever people gather, a flying squad appears to book a case. More so, especially when it comes to Congress party meetings, they are ready to book more cases. That is why we will have to hold small meetings to send a message to the people. We will have to go door to door," Rao said at the party meeting.

We will come to power in Goa, Uttarakhand and Punjab. Bharatiya Janata Party will not win elections in Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming Assembly elections: Maharashtra Congress Chief Nana Patole

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Monday accused the BJP of garnering votes in the name of religion and caste to come to power, and claimed the saffron party was doing the same in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh. Talking to reporters at Swami Vivekanand Airport in Raipur before leaving for Uttarakhand, which will also go to polls next month, Baghel accused the central BJP-led government of wanting to take control over states through proposed amendments to the IAS (Cadre) Rules-1954. Baghel is the Congress's senior observer for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, scheduled to be held in multiple phases over the next two months.

The TMC hit out at Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday for attributing the failure to forge an alliance for the Goa assembly polls to "poaching", calling his remark an attempt to give excuses for the main opposition party's "inexplicable and damaging inability" to respond to a mature and courageous call for greater opposition unity. The TMC leadership also asked the veteran Congress leader to look at his own party's "inability and failure" to keep its flock together. "Mr Chidambaram is clutching at straws to explain somehow his party's inexplicable and damaging inability to respond to TMC's mature and courageous call for greater opposition unity. First, he said that there was no concrete response, he is now saying something different after he was countered. He should stop giving such excuses," TMC national vice-president Pavan Varma told PTI.

BJP and its partners have announced seat-sharing pact for Punjab polls. While the BJP will contest on 65 seats, the Punjab Lok Congress of Captain Amarinder Singh will field 37 candidates. The SAD (Sanyukt) of Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa will field 15 candidates. Polling in Punjab will be held in a single phase on February 20. The Punjab Legislative Assembly has 117 chairs. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

Today we are promising in our manifesto that LPG cylinder prices will not cross Rs 500 if we form govt in Uttarakhand: Chhattisgarh CM and Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel in Dehradun

With the BJP taking to the streets with a team of women leaders, at least three of whom joined the saffron party in recent times, the Congress on Monday termed it 'Priyanka effect' and a 'face-saving exercise' for the government. Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur, along with a team of women leaders, including the latest entrants- Aparna Yadav, Aditi Singh and Priyanka Maurya- was on the campaign trail in the heart of the state capital on Sunday. "The 'Ladki Hoon Lad Sakti Hoon' slogan given by Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and the manner in which she has been fighting for their cause has forced other political parties to realize that politics cannot be done without women. What we saw on the roads of Lucknow yesterday (Sunday) can clearly be termed Priyanka effect," Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee chief Ajay Kumar Lallu told PTI in an interview. "After announcing 40 per cent tickets to women, Priyanka had stated that no party can ignore half the population. This is coming true and we find that the BJP leaders are marching on the streets projecting a women-friendly face," Lallu said. "Even then, they had to resort to women leaders who crossed over to the BJP only in the last few days," Lallu said.

Arvind Kejriwal is a 'scamster'. Congress has complained over this issue to Election Commission...A show-cause notice has been sent today. He's trying to befool people of Punjab through his dirty tricks...AAP has created a hybrid model of fake news. Arvind Kejriwal launched a number for (AAP) CM face & said he received about 21 lakh messages... Even if it's 24*7. a pvt number won't receive over 5000 messages or calls. It's a scam to trick people. He's a 'masquerader', trying to fake a perception: Navjot Singh Sidhu, Congress

Congress releases a list of 30 star campaigners for the first phase of Uttar Pradesh Elections. Party chief Sonia Gandhi, ex-PM Dr Manmohan Singh, party leaders Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ashok Gehlot, Bhupesh Baghel, Sachin Pilot & others to campaign.

Samajwadi Party MLA Subhash Rai, who represents Jalalpur constituency in the Uttar Pradesh assembly, joined the BJP on Monday. Rai joined the party here in the presence of deputy chief ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Dinesh Sharma besides state BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh. Noting that Rai was in the BJP earlier, Singh said his return to the party was "ghar wapsi" which will strengthen it in the region. "There is rule of law in the state. Peace and spirit of nationalism are in ascendence in the state," he said, saying Rai joined the party due to these reasons.BJP MP and its chief spokesperson Anil Baluni said a wave in his party's favour is blowing in the state and that those who want to practice politics of development and nationalism are joining it from other parties too.

Aam Aadmi Party leader Raghav Chadha submits a letter to Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit "seeking his immediate intervention in the multilayered illegal sand mining racket in Punjab allegedly run by and under the aegis of CM Channi".

Bharatiya Janata Party fields Ajay Pratap Singh from Thakurdwara Assembly constituency in the upcoming polls in Uttarakhand 

After failing to stitch an alliance with BJP in Uttar Pradesh, the top leadership of Janata Dal-United (JD-U) has started targeting Union Minister R.C.P. Singh. Singh, a minister in the Modi cabinet, is said to have close links with BJP top leadership despite him becoming union minister under the JD-U quota. The party had given him the responsibility to make an alliance with the BJP for UP polls, but he failed. JD-U national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh has already said that the delay in the announcement of the candidates for the Uttar Pradesh elections is due to R.C.P Singh. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

The Samajwadi Party has urged the Election Commission to stop the opinion polls from being aired on some news channels with immediate effect. In a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner, the party claimed that airing of the polls is a violation of the model code of conduct and they can misguide the voters and influence the election.

The BJP's Miranpur candidate for the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls has been booked for allegedly giving an inflammatory speech at an election meeting and violating EC guidelines on physical campaigning, police said on Monday. Pershant Gujjar and his 40 supporters have also been booked for holding the meeting without permission on Sunday, Kakroli Station House Officer (SHO) Sunil Sharma said. He said that the meeting took place despite the Election Commission (EC) banning all kinds of physical poll public meetings and rallies in view of the Covid situation. Gujjar, in a video clip, is heard appealing to people in Chorawala village to support him in the elections as the BJP is of Hindus and the opposition Samajwadi Party (SP) is a Muslims' party.  Sharma said Gujjar and his supporters were booked after investigation of the video, which has gone viral on social media.

"Ek Mauka Kejriwal Ko"- We are starting this campaign from today...Delhi people can make videos telling people of other states about work done by AAP and appeal to them to give Kejriwal/AAP a chance, ahead of polls. Upload these videos on social media: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

Congress CEC to meet today for the selection of candidates for Punjab Assembly elections. The CEC will also decide today on the remaining list of the candidates for the Uttarakhand polls.

Punjab Minister Rana Gurjeet Singh urges Congress chief Sonia Gandhi "to intervene into the allotment of party ticket from Bholath to Sukhpal Singh Khaira, demands his expulsion by calling him "a tainted minister."

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday launched a scathing attack on Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav over his controversial remark wherein he described Pakistan as a 'political enemy'. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said that Akhilesh Yadav should express regret and apologise for the comment. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram), the political outfit of the Bhim Army, has formed a pre-poll alliance with around 30 smaller political parties to contest the UP polls. Our (Samajik Parivartan) Morcha will field candidates on all the 403 assembly seats in the UP polls. Alliance will not field any candidate against SP chief Akhilesh Yadav: Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad

BSP president Mayawati on Monday said the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh is trying to take credit for works started by her when she was chief minister. She also said that the "biggest" problems in the state are poor law and order, unemployment and migration. Slamming the Yogi Adityanath dispensation, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief said it is very sad that state is lagging behind. "Fear, corruption, discrimination and insecurity of life and property, that is, poor law and order, unemployment and migration of lakhs, are the biggest problems of this state with a huge population," Mayawati said in a tweet in Hindi. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

BJP's ally Apna Dal (S) has announced its first candidate for the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls. The party has fielded Haider Ali Khan from Suar in Rampur district. Abdullah Azam, the son of jailed Samajwadi Party MP Azam Khan, is likely to be the SP's candidate from here. 

Congress' position in Uttarakhand is good...BJP divides people on the basis of religion. They have done it in Uttar Pradesh and are still doing it. BJP got power by using religion but what did people get by voting for them?: Chhattisgarh CM and Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel

Union Home Minister Amit Shah reaches BJP headquarters in Delhi

President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday greeted residents of Uttar Pradesh on the state's foundation day and expressed hope that it will continue to progress on the path of development and prosperity. The state government celebrates 'Uttar Pradesh Divas' on January 24 every year, the day when the erstwhile United Provinces was renamed as Uttar Pradesh in 1950. "Hearty greetings to all the residents of the state on Uttar Pradesh Diwas. The hardworking and talented people of Uttar Pradesh have made impressive contributions to history, art, culture, literature and politics of India. I wish that this state continues to progress on the path of development and prosperity," Kovind tweeted.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath arrives at BJP Headquarters in Delhi

Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati took a dig at Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and said that he should tell the people of the state that the monastery where he lives most of the time in Gorakhpur, his constituency where he is set to contest from in the upcoming Assembly polls, is "not lesser than a big bungalow." In a series of tweets in Hindi on Sunday, the former chief minister said, "Probably the people of western UP do not know that the monastery where Yogi ji lives most of the time in Gorakhpur, is no lesser than a big bungalow. It would have been better if he had told about this." Mayawati also said that the Chief Minister should have mentioned the work done by her when she was in power.

BJP will double its tally and get a two-third majority in the forthcoming assembly elections in the state, PTI quoted Manipur CM N Biren Singh as saying. Assembly elections in the state will be held in two phases on February 27 and March 3 and the counting of votes will take place on March 10. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

Former Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal on Sunday sought the immediate release of 1993 Delhi bomb blast convict Davinderpal Singh Bhullar in the “larger interest of consolidating peace and communal harmony” in Punjab. Bhullar was convicted in connection with the killing of nine people and injuring of 31 in the blast. Among those who survived the attack are former Youth Congress chief M S Bitta. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

Ahead of the first-phase polling in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP MLA from Agra's Fatehabad constituency, Jitendra Verma, resigned from the party and said that he has joined the Samajwadi Party. Verma's name did not figure in the list of candidates released by the BJP for the first phase of elections. He was replaced by Chhotelal Verma. In his two-line resignation letter sent to Uttar Pradesh BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh, Verma wrote, "I am resigning from the primary membership of the BJP. Kindly accept it." Speaking to PTI, he said, "There are many reasons why I left the BJP. Even 15 days after I was denied ticket, the party leadership did not talk to me. I have joined the Samajwadi Party and I will not contest this election." He claimed that BJP workers and MLAs have no say in the party.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has alleged that the old pension scheme was stopped during the Samajwadi Party tenure. He said this while responding to Akhilesh Yadav's promise that his party if forms the government after the upcoming polls, will restore the old pension scheme of the state government employees. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

The Samajwadi Party's alliance seems to be running into rough weather over the issue of seat allotment.

While the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), an ally of the Samajwadi Party (SP) in west Uttar Pradesh, is facing trouble over seat allotment in at least eight Assembly segments, another ally has now queered the pitch for the SP.

A day after SP president Akhilesh Yadav named Rita Singh as the party candidate from the Sandila Assembly constituency in Hardoi for the UP polls, his alliance partner Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) has now announced its own candidate for the same seat.

In a press statement, the SBSP named its UP president 'Sunil Arkvanshi as the Samajwadi Party-SBSP candidate on the Sandila seat in Hardoi for the UP polls'.

Punjab Minister Razia Sultana on Sunday said that Congress will fight the election under the leadership of Navjot Singh Sidhu, Charanjit Singh Channi and Sunil Jakhar but the chief minister will be decided after the Assembly elections only.

"There will be no tussle inside the party regarding CM's face. The election will be fought under the leadership of Sidhu, Channi and Sunil Jakhar. When the party wins the election, we will be asked about who our leader (CM) should be. This has been our tradition," said Razia.

"All three of them are very good leaders. CM Channi has done a lot in a short span of time. At the same time, Navjot Singh Sidhu is an honest and emotional person. We will decide the leader after the election results," she said.

"Last time the face of Captain Amarinder Singh was put forward, that decision was also taken after listening to all the voices in the party," she added.

Aam Aadmi Party's Punjab co-incharge Raghav Chadha has sought time to meet Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit over the issue of the alleged involvement of Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi in illegal sand mining.

According to AAP, Chadha wants to discuss the recent facts that have emerged after the raids conducted by the Enforcement Directorate at the residence of CM's relatives in connection with illegal sand mining.

The ED on Wednesday seized more than Rs 10 crore cash, gold worth above 21 lakh and a Rolex watch worth Rs 12 lakh from the residential premises of land mafia Bhupinder Singh Honey and others in connection with an alleged illegal sand mining case.

After the Model Code of Conduct came into force in Punjab for the Assembly elections, various enforcement teams have seized valuables worth Rs 46.66 crores for violation of the code till January 18, 2022, the Chief Electoral Officer of Punjab informed on Sunday.

Giving details of the same, CEO Punjab Dr S Karuna Raju said that the surveillance teams have seized 6.60 lakh litres of liquor worth Rs 2 crore.

"Similarly, the enforcement wings have also recovered psychotropic substances amounting to Rs 44.49 crores besides confiscating unaccounted cash of Rs 16 lakhs," he added.

The Chief Electoral Officer revealed that as many as 1088 vulnerable hamlets have been identified.

Besides this, 2,376 persons have been identified as probable sources of trouble, he said adding that out of these persons preventive action had already been initiated against 1,129 persons while the remaining would also be brought to book.

Jeevan Gupta, state General Secretary of BJP on Sunday said that the divisive, petty and alarming statement hurting Hindu sentiments by former Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Mohammad Mustafa, who is also the principal strategic adviser to Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu is deplorable.

"The statement castigating the Hindus by Mustafa is nothing but a true reflection of the mindset of the Congress party. Mustafa holds a top position as the political advisor to none other than Navjot Singh Sidhu, state party president of Congress," Gupta said.

"Mustafa has been given relief by booking him under minor sections of Indian Penal Code (IPC) for a serious crime of instigating and insulting on religious grounds," he added.

Attacking the Congress, Gupta said that it is a political party that has always massacred in name of religion.

Income tax raids in Lucknow ahead of UP polls.

Watch Video Report

Why Captain Amarinder Singh said Navjot Singh Sidhu has "no brains".

Watch Video Report

Two former MLAs of the Samajwadi Party and their hundreds of supporters were booked for allegedly violating the model code of conduct (MCC) for elections and the COVID-19 protocol in this district, police said on Sunday.

Additional Superintendent of Police Kunwar Gyananjay Singh said the first case was registered at Payagpur police station against former Samajwadi Party (SP) MLA Mukesh Srivastava and 400-450 others for campaigning without prior permission, and for violation of Covid norms.

A case was lodged under sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Epidemic Act. A jeep was also seized under the Motor Vehicles Act.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday took part in a door-to-door campaign in Ghaziabad and launched a scathing attack on the Samajwadi Party, saying while a Haj House was built here earlier, his government constructed the Kailash Mansarovar Bhawan.

During the day, Adityanath addressed his party workers in Krishna Dental College of Sahibabad and in Saraswati Shishu Mandir in Nehru Nagar, besides the door-to-door campaign in Rajiv Colony of Sahibabad.

"Earlier Haj House was made in Ghaziabad. Our government constructed Kailash Mansarovar Bhawan. Earlier the mafia used to harass traders, but now no mafia can dare to grab property of any trader, doctor or a poor person...," he said.

"In the past, ration meant for the poor did not reach them and it would go to Bangladesh through the food grains mafia. But today food grains are reaching the poor and 15 crore people have got it. The 'double engine' government is making available a double dose of food grains," he said, referring to the BJP-led dispensations in the state and at the Centre.

More than 6,600 litres of liquor worth Rs 32 lakh was seized on Sunday from a truck near Bajna on National Highway-2 falling under Highway Police Station, officials said.

“Police have recovered 550 boxes containing a variety of liquor being brought from Delhi,” Senior Superintendent of Police Gaurav Grover said.

According to police, the seizure was made during a joint operation of the Highway Police Station and Special Operations Group.
The liquor was being smuggled in the container truck to Agra, police said.

The driver of the truck -- 32-year-old Jogendra Singh from Jammu -- has been sent to judicial custody, they said. 

Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati took a dig at Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and said that he should tell the people of the state that the monastery where he lives most of the time in Gorakhpur, his constituency where he is set to contest from in the upcoming Assembly polls, is "not lesser than a big bungalow."

Following Utpal Parrikar's resignation from the BJP and his decision to contest the upcoming Goa Assembly polls as an independent candidate after the party denied him a ticket from the Panaji constituency, General Secretary CT Ravi requested him to reconsider his decision and fulfil his father, former Goa CM Manohar Parrikar's dream.

Notably, Utpal resigned from the party's membership after being denied a ticket from the Panaji constituency and fielded Congress turncoat Atanasio "Babush" Monserrate instead. He had declared to contest the polls as an independent candidate. The BJP had released a list of 34 candidates for the polls last week.

Meghalaya Chief Minister and National People's Party president, Conrad Sangma along with Deputy Chief Minister Yumnam Joykumar Singh of Manipur and State president L Jayantakumar Singh on Sunday virtually released the manifesto (Action Document 2022) for the upcoming Manipur Assembly elections.

Manipur is among the five states slated to go to the polls next month.

The Election Commission of India on Sunday announced the election schedule for the Punjab Assembly elections and said that the filing of nomination will begin from Tuesday (January 25). They also informed that the scrutiny of nomination will be done on February 2, while the last date of withdrawal of candidature is February 4.

Briefing about the details, Chief Electoral Officer of Punjab Dr S Karuna Raju said that as per schedule announced, the filing of nomination papers for the upcoming Vidhan Sabha 2022 elections would start with issuance of notification on January 25 (Tuesday) and would continue till February 1.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday held a marathon meeting of its core members to discuss the finalisation of remaining candidates for the upcoming Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh. According to the sources in the party, the Central Election Committee meeting is likely to be held soon.

The meeting was attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP president JP Nadda, UP CM Yogi Adityanath, election incharge Dharmendra Pradhan, Deputy CMs Dinesh Sharma and Keshav Prasad Maurya along with BJP state president Swantantra Dev Singh apart from other core members.

So far, the BJP has announced 165 candidates for the state.