UP Monsoon session: Oppn likely to rake up ‘internal rift’, all eyes on how BJP counters it

LUCKNOW Amid the uneasy calm prevailing in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) camp in UP, the opposition is likely to attack the ruling party over its ‘internal rift’ during the monsoon session of the state legislature starting July 29. All eyes will now be on how the BJP counters the opposition.

“As this will be the first assembly session after the BJP’s poor show in Uttar Pradesh in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, the opposition will be on the offensive to corner the ruling party,” said a BJP leader. Samajwadi Party chief and former CM Akhilesh Yadav has already gone on the offensive against the BJP through his series of posts on X (formerly Twitter).

The focus will also be on chief minister Yogi Adityanath, who will share the treasury bench with deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya and other senior leaders of the party after fissures in the party.

“How the BJP led by CM Yogi Adityanath will counter the opposition, which will go hammer and tongs on the ruling party in the monsoon session will be watched keenly,” said the BJP leader. The NEET paper leak and teachers’ protest are also likely to be ammo for the opposition.

It was chief minister Yogi Adityanath who intervened to cool-off a heated exchange of words between former CM Akhilesh Yadav and deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya during assembly session in May 2022.

The rift in the BJP, reportedly centred around CM Adityanath and Maurya brewing after the Lok Sabha poll debacle, was ignited further at the state executive meeting of the BJP on July 14 presided over by its national president JP Nadda.

In this closed-door meeting, while addressing a gathering of 3,500 party workers and office-bearers, Maurya had said: “The party organisation is bigger than the government and nobody is bigger than the organisation.”

The video of Maurya’s statement went viral on social media.

This statement triggered the ‘sarkar vs sangathan’ debate within the state BJP causing much embarrassment for the central leadership of the party. Maurya and state BJP president Bhupendra Chaudhary were called for a meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday.

After meeting party president JP Nadda and home minister Amit Shah, Maurya returned to Lucknow late on Wednesday night. He remained aloof to the media at his 7 Kalidas Marg residence. For the media, all roads led to Maurya’s residence at 7 KD, a few metres away from the chief minister’s residence at 5 KD Marg. But all attempts to reach out to Maurya went in vain.

“Ghar pe nahi hain,” was the official reply from Maurya’s personal assistant on phone.

However, the deputy CM met BJP MP from Domariyaganj, Jagdambika Pal, who dropped in along with a few others to meet him. Most of the activities of the deputy CM remained confined to X.

According to BJP sources, Maurya chose to remain silent, acting on the advice of the central leadership.