Joined by 17 ministers, PM Modi to spearhead BJP’s UP campaign

LUCKNOW/NEW DELHI: With PM Narendra Modi as its prime poll mascot, BJP has named 17 union ministers, including home minister Rajnath Singh and Hindutva firebrand Adityanath while skipping veterans like LK Advani and MM Joshi for the Uttar Pradesh election campaign.
The assembly election beginning February 11 will stretch all the way to March 8 and BJP is gearing up for a sustained election campaign going by the list of premier campaigners it has handed to the Election Commission.
A significant omission from the list is Sultanpur MP Varun Gandhi, who is son of union minister for women and child development Maneka Gandhi. Joshi is out despite being MP from Kanpur and BJP seems to have sent a strong message to loud mouths by excluding Unnao MP Sakshi Maharaj — reprimanded by the EC for his communal remarks against Muslims — from the list.
Names of Muzaffarnagar riot accused Suresh Rana and Sangeet Singh Som are also missing. Having decided to contest the election over issues such as its “corruption-free” record at the Centre, demonetisation, surgical strikes and an electoral strategy aimed at wooing a populous chunk of backward castes, the party is promising a cleaner administration and improved governance. Modi, who has been on the campaign trail for some weeks now and has spoken at length in defence of demonetisation, is expected to address at least 12 rallies in the state.
Others on the list include Rajasthan governor Kalyan Singh’s son and Etah Lok Sabha MP Rajveer Singh and Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari. Varun Gandhi does not seem to have caught the favour of the leadership despite the attempts of his supporters to pitch him as a chief ministerial hopeful. The other important omissions, besides Advani and Joshi, are Vinay Katiar, once the face of the Ayodhya movement.
BJP intends to capitalise on the popularity of Yogi Adiyanath, a polarising figure in east UP. As head of the Gorakhnath Temple, Yogi enjoys considerable clout though he, too, has sometimes shot his mouth off. There were reports of his being unhappy for not being on the UP election committee but he has denied these as “rumours”. Bhojpuri star and recently appointed Delhi unit chief Manoj Tiwari will be sent to areas in east UP adjoining Bihar, where Tiwari has a large following as singer and actor. Two BJP CMs —Vasundhara Raje from Rajasthan and Shivraj Singh from Madhya Pradesh — are also among the star campaigners. The list includes former BSP member Swami Prasad Maurya who has been pacified after he felt miffed as his nominees were ignored. He has been assured tickets for his family members. Names of former UPCC chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi and former Rajya Sabha members from the BSP Brijesh Pathak and Jugul Kishore are not in the list. Party sources said they may contest the polls.