UP polls phase 5: Keshav Prasad Maurya exudes confidence in his victory from Sitharu seat, says 'lotus will bloom with huge margin'

Kaushambi (Uttar Pradesh) [India], February 27 (ANI): Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya who is contesting State Assembly elections from Kaushambi's Sitharu constituency in the fifth phase of polling, on Saturday, exuded confidence in his victory and said that "lotus will bloom" with a huge margin.
He also claimed that there will be no trace of the Samajwadi Party in the Sitharu constituency while Bahujan Samaj Party had already lost its presence here.
Speaking to ANI, Maurya said, "Sitharu is going to the polls tomorrow. I am fully confident that lotus will bloom here with a huge margin. Everybody knows me here because I am the son of this constituency. There will be no trace of SP here while BSP has already lost its presence."
The Minister also lauded the double engine government for the development works done in Uttar Pradesh since Bharatiya Janata Party came to power at the Centre and in the state.
"The double engine government has worked for the welfare of poor, farmers, youth, women empowerment, security, etc. I am confident that the people of Sitharu will give me blessings as I have done a lot of work here," Maurya stated.
"BJP got 73 seats in Uttar Pradesh during 2014 Lok Sabha polls when Akhilesh Yadav was the Chief Minister. And in the 2017 Assembly polls, we won 325 seats. We are winning more than 300 seats again. The double engine government will work for Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikaas," added the Minister.
Notably, there are around 3,80,839 voters in the Sitharu constituency, out of which 19 per cent belong to the general caste, 33 per cent to Dalits, 13 per cent to Muslims and about 34 per cent from the backward classes.
The SP has fielded Pallavi Patel against Keshav Prasad Maurya from the Sitharu seat, while the entry of Munsab Ali Usmani from the BSP has made the contest interesting.
Eastern Uttar Pradesh is all set to tinge its political chrome as the countdown has begun for the fifth phase of state Assembly polls scheduled on Sunday.
A total of 61 Assembly constituencies spread across 12 districts including Ayodhya, Sultanpur, Chitrakoot, Pratapgarh, Kaushambi, Prayagraj, Barabaki, Bahraich, Shrawasti, Gonda, Amethi and Raebareli are going to polls on Sunday. The polling will begin at 7 am and continue till 6 pm.
As many as 692 candidates are in the fray in the fifth phase whose political fate will be decided by around 2.24 crore electorates.
The state is witnessing a multi-cornered contest with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Samajwadi Party (SP), Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) as prime contenders.
In 2017, BJP had won 38 seats out of 55 seats in this region, while the SP had retained 15 and the Congress had won two seats.
When it comes to key issues, job losses among migrant labourers, lack of infrastructure, unemployment and most-importantly stray cattle menace hound the ruling BJP that might lead to a jerky ride for the party in this phase. Further, some sort of anti-incumbency factor exists that might reflect on the ballot box.
Polling for four phases of the seven-phased Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections has already concluded. The fifth phase, which is scheduled for February 27, will mainly cover the eastern region.
The remaining two phases will take place on March 3 and March 6. The counting of votes will take place on March 10. (ANI)