Adityanath to contest assembly election from Gorakhpur

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will contest the Uttar Pradesh election from Gorakhpur, the BJP said on Saturday while releasing its first list of candidates.

Polling for the Gorakhpur (Urban) seat will be on March 3 — the sixth and penultimate phase of the assembly election.

Earlier, there were reports that the party could field Adityanath from Ayodhya, in order to amplify its Hindutva message and galvanise the cadre.

Also read: How UP’s 80% are polarising against Yogi Adityanath

The party announced names of 107 candidates for the seats going to the polls in the first two phases. The list was released by the BJP’s Uttar Pradesh in-charge and Union minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, and general secretary Arun Singh, during a press conference at the party headquarters in New Delhi.

Pradhan said Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya will contest from Sirathu. 

Adityanath was a five-term Lok Sabha member from Gorakhpur. He and Maurya are currently members of the states legislative council.

“The BJP has provided welfare and sensitive governance in Uttar Pradesh in the last five years. We are confident that the people of UP will again bless us in this great festival of 2022 with the same clarity,” the BJP tweeted quoting Pradhan.

Elections for the 403-member assembly will be held in seven phases starting February 10.