Lucknow, Jul 19 (IANS): The Uttar Pradesh Assembly has declared the Ghosi seat vacant with effect from July 17 after SP MLA Dara Singh Chauhan formally tendered his resignation from Vidhan Sabha membership to Speaker Satish Mahana and joined the BJP.

With this, the seat is set for a by-poll amid the Opposition stepping up its aggression against the ruling BJP.

Sources said that the ruling party will not leave any stone unturned to win the seat which slipped out of its hand in the 2022 Assembly polls when Dara Singh Chauhan turned rebel and switched over to the SP.

The SP had then forged an alliance with the Om Prakash Rajbhar-led SBSP which has a perceptible foothold amongst the OBCs, primarily the Rajbhars in the east Uttar Pradesh region. With SBSP now in the saffron camp, the BJP hopes to win back the seat.

BJP sources said that the party high command would take a call on the choice of candidate for Ghosi once the Election Commission announces the by-poll.

Sources do not rule out the possibility of BJP fielding Chauhan from the seat in the by-poll, amid whirling speculations that he might eventually be accommodated in the Yogi Adityanath cabinet.

As a matter of fact, the Ghosi Lok Sabha seat too had fallen vacant in May after the BSP MP Afzal Ansari was indicted by an MP/MLA court in a criminal case. Ansari, brother of gangster Mukhtar Ansari was sentenced to imprisonment.