Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], October 6 (ANI): Setting the stage for the Rajya Sabha elections, eight candidates fielded by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) filed their nomination papers on Tuesday at Vidhan Bhavan in Lucknow.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath accompanied the nominees to the state assembly complex.
Along with the state CM, BJP State President Pankaj Chaudhary, Deputy Chief Ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak, alongside other senior party leaders were also present to oversee the filing process on the final day of nominations.
Following the filing of nomination papers, Uttar Pradesh Deputy CM Keshav Prasad expressed absolute confidence in the party's electoral strength, dismissing opposition calculations.
"All eight BJP candidates will win the Rajya Sabha elections; whether the SP fields a third candidate or not, the BJP will emerge victorious regardless. The BJP embodies the spirit of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas', presenting a 'Triveni' (a confluence) of candidates representing the forward, backward, and Scheduled castes; the party has fielded excellent candidates, and all of them are set to win," Maurya told reporters.
Targeting Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav over his projection figures, Maurya took a sharp swipe at past electoral claims.
He said, "Akhilesh Yadav talked about '403' in 2022 but stopped at 111 seats; now he is talking about '400-plus' again. This time, he won't even manage to score a century..."
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) eight nominees include Dharampal Singh, Vidyasagar Sonkar, Ram Pratap Singh, Priyanka Rawat, Radhakant Ojha, Gopikrishna Pandey, Shruti Gangwar, and Prakash Pal
On Tuesday, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) officially announced Vidyasagar Sonkar and Prakash Pal among its eight candidates from Uttar Pradesh for the upcoming biennial Rajya Sabha elections scheduled for October 16.
After the announcement, both Sonkar and Pal expressed gratitude to the party's central and state leadership for placing their trust in them and said they would strive to fulfil the responsibilities entrusted to them.
Sonkar said he had spoken with party leaders on Monday and thanked the central leadership for the opportunity.
"I spoke with everyone yesterday. I extend my heartfelt gratitude and best wishes to the entire central leadership. I am grateful to the leadership for placing their trust in me. I have always worked at every level, from the booth up to the state organisation. I will strive to live up to their expectations," he said.
Sonkar said the government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Centre and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Uttar Pradesh was working towards Antyodaya, social harmony and the welfare of vulnerable sections.
"Under the leadership of our successful PM Modi at the Centre and the CM Yogi in the state, the government is actively working on Antyodaya (upliftment of the last person), social harmony, and the welfare of the vulnerable sections of society," he said.
He added that he would continue to work as a party worker and maintain active connections with people.
"As a worker of this party, my constant endeavour is to maintain active connections with everyone. I have always maintained the mindset of a party worker, and I will continue to serve the party and society with that same spirit," Sonkar said.
Pal, meanwhile, described the day as auspicious and thanked the BJP's national and state leadership for placing their trust in him.
"Today is a very auspicious day in my life. Our national leadership, PM Modi, Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, BL Santhosh and the entire national leadership, along with CM Yogi, Pankaj Chaudhary, and our state leadership, including Keshav Maurya and Brajesh Pathak, have placed their trust in me," Pal said.
He said he would visit a Hanuman temple before filing his nomination and seek blessings to fulfil the responsibility entrusted to him.
"I will go and visit the Hanuman temple right now to pray to the Lord. I will ask for the strength to properly discharge the responsibility entrusted to me with complete devotion and loyalty to the party," he said."
After offering prayers to Lord Hanuman, I will return with my seniors to file my nomination," Pal added.
The eight candidates fielded by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are unlikely to face to much trouble in getting elected to the upper house with the party having the numbers to push them through. (ANI)
Uttar Pradesh: Yogi Adityanath accompanies BJP nominees as they file Rajya Sabha papers in Lucknow
