UP: Former SP leader Sanjeev Katiyar joins BJP

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], April 18 (ANI): Former Samajwadi Party leader Sanjeev Katiyar joined the BJP in the presence of Deputy CM Brajesh Pathak on Thursday.
Katiyar served the Samajwadi Party as its District Panchayat President.
At the joining event, Brajesh Pathak, while welcoming Katiyar asked his support for BJP in Kannauj to secure victory in the Lok Sabha elections.
"I welcome Sanjeev Katiyar in the BJP. He will support us in winning the elections in Kannauj, which is a very important place for us. I congratulate him and request that he support the party. The BJP will always support you as a member of the family," the Deputy CM said.
In Uttar Pradesh, the Lok Sabha election 2024 will be held in seven phases from April 19 to June 1. Votes polled in the seven phases of the Uttar Pradesh Lok Sabha election 2024 will be counted on June 4.
Campaigning for the first phase of polling on April 19 in Uttar Pradesh concluded Wednesday evening, with candidates closing up their campaigns for eight parliamentary seats.
The seats going to the polls in the first phase on Friday are Saharanpur, Bijnor, Kairana, Muzaffarnagar, Nagina, Moradabad, Rampur, and Pilibhit.
In the 2019 elections, turning the arithmetic of the SP-BSP 'Mahagatbandhan' in Uttar Pradesh upside down, the BJP and its ally Apna Dal (S) won 64 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats. The partners in the alliance, Akhilesh Yadav's SP and Mayawati's BSP could only muster 15 seats.
The election for 543 Lok Sabha seats will be held in seven phases starting April 19. (ANI)