Lucknow, Mar 10 (IANS): While the major political parties in Uttar Pradesh have been facing hiccups in maintaining their performance, it is the Apna Dal, led by Union minister Anupriya Patel, that has steadfastly maintained its success rate in elections in the past decade.

The Apna Dal contested 17 seats in the Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, and as per the latest data issued by the Election Commission of India, it has won eight seats and is in lead four others.

Patel made her debut in the 2012 Assembly elections when her party contested two seats and won both. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the party contested two seats in alliance with the BJP and won both -- a success rate of 100 per cent. Patel went on to become a Minister of State at the Centre.

In the 2017 Assembly elections, the Apna Dal contested 11 seats in alliance with the BJP and won nine. It is noteworthy that a national party like the Congress could manage to win only seven seats in Uttar Pradesh in 2017.

The path to success continued in 2019 when the Apna Dal again contested two seats and won both.

In between, the Apna Dal split into two factions -- one led by Patel and the other by her mother, Krishna Patel, who allied with the Samajwadi Party in these elections.

The Apna Dal, a Kurmi-centric party, was founded by Anupriya Patel's father Sonelal Patel in 1995. It is one of the most reliable allies of the BJP -- one that does not make demands or drives a hard bargain.

"It is the love of the people that keeps us going. On our part, we remain loyal to the ideology on which my father founded this party," says Anupriya, beaming at her new found success.