Daijiworld Media Network - Lucknow

Lucknow, Oct 29: Uttar Pradesh minister Om Prakash Rajbhar on Thursday said the recent Legislative Council election results reflected the mandate of educated voters rather than the general public, after the Samajwadi Party (SP) defeated the BJP in the Varanasi and Lucknow Graduates’ constituencies.

The BJP won six of the 11 Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council seats, while the SP secured five. The results are being viewed as a significant political contest between the two parties ahead of the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.

“People have given their mandate. It is the mandate of educated people, and we welcome the mandate that has emerged. These are the votes of educated people, not the common public. During the Assembly elections, these same educated people will not turn up at polling booths. Then, the common voter will be seen at the booths,” Rajbhar said.

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya acknowledged that the BJP had expected to win more seats. Speaking in Lucknow on Tuesday, he said the party would review the results and work to improve its performance in future elections.

“We were expecting to win even more seats, but we did not win that many. We will look into this. The SP won where it should not have. We will introspect. We will make efforts to ensure that the BJP wins once again in the forthcoming elections,” Maurya said.

In the Varanasi Graduates’ constituency, SP candidate Ashutosh Sinha defeated BJP nominee Kedar Nath Singh, securing 55,046 votes, according to election officials. Earlier counting figures showed Sinha leading with 50,462 votes against Singh’s 33,478 after the ninth round of counting of first-preference votes.

Following his defeat, Kedar Nath Singh thanked voters and party workers in a social media post, saying he accepted the mandate with humility and in accordance with democratic norms.

“Although we could not achieve the expected success in this election, your affection, cooperation and trust will always remain invaluable to me,” he said in Hindi.

Singh also thanked BJP and alliance leaders, workers and supporters, adding that he would continue to work for the interests and concerns of the graduates’ community, regardless of the election outcome.

In the Lucknow Graduates’ constituency, SP candidate Kanti Singh defeated BJP nominee Avneesh Kumar Singh. Earlier counting figures showed Kanti Singh securing 51,168 votes against Avneesh Kumar Singh’s 36,313 after more than eight rounds. A senior district official confirmed Kanti Singh’s victory and said she had received the certificate of election.

Polling for the 11 Legislative Council seats was held on October 23, with counting beginning on Tuesday.

The BJP won the Agra Graduates’ constituency, the Bareilly-Moradabad Teachers’ constituency, the Lucknow Teachers’ constituency, the Meerut Teachers’ and Graduates’ constituencies, and the Gorakhpur-Faizabad Teachers’ constituency.

The SP secured the Allahabad-Jhansi Graduates’ constituency and the Varanasi and Agra-Aligarh Teachers’ constituencies. Its victories in the Varanasi and Lucknow Graduates’ constituencies subsequently took its tally to five.

Before the elections, the BJP held six seats, including the Agra, Meerut-Saharanpur and Lucknow Graduates’ constituencies, along with the Bareilly-Moradabad, Lucknow and Meerut-Saharanpur Teachers’ constituencies. The SP held three seats — the Varanasi and Allahabad-Jhansi Graduates’ constituencies and the Varanasi Teachers’ constituency — while independents held the Agra and Gorakhpur-Faizabad Teachers’ seats.