Yogi Adityanath met BJP chief JP Nadda tonight ahead of Thursday’s legislative party meeting.
New Delhi:
Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister-designate of Uttar Pradesh, met BJP chief JP Nadda today for a last-minute discussion on government-building in the state, where the party achieved a record victory earlier this month. Yogi Adityanath met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi on March 13, three days after the results were announced.
The BJP will hold its legislative party meeting tomorrow and formally elect its leader. The new government’s swearing-in ceremony will be held on Friday at a mega event at Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ikana Stadium in Lucknow.
Senior BJP leader and Home Minister Amit Shah is expected to attend the meeting as the party’s government-building observer.
While decisions have been made for the top post, there is still uncertainty about the post of deputy prime minister, following Keshav Maurya’s defeat in the election. Maurya had lost in Sirathu to Pallavi Patel of Apna Dal (Kamerawadi), who entered a Samajwadi Party ticket.
In addition to Mr Maurya, 10 more ministers lost the elections. Yogi Adityanath’s second deputy, Dinesh Sharma, did not fight.
There were several contenders for the post including Dinesh Sharma, Baby Rani Maurya, Brijesh Pathak, Swatantar Dev Singh and AK Sharma.
However, many in the BJP believe that Maurya still has a chance, especially after Pushkar Singh Dhami was given a second term in Uttarakhand’s top post, despite his defeat in his constituency.
Friday’s oath ceremony is expected to be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with several members of his cabinet and key ministers from BJP-ruled states.
The BJP and its allies won 274 of the state’s 403 parliamentary seats, becoming the first party in more than three decades to receive a second consecutive term.
