LUCKNOW: Even before formal “announcement of results, Smajwadi Party Chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and Bahujan Samaj Supremo Kanshi Ram on Noy.29 called on UP Governor Moti Lal Vora in a “preemptive and premature” bid to stake their claim to form the next UP government in sharp contrast, the BJP, whose tally of WIG6MLAS equaled that of the SPBSP combine after the end Of counting in 421 of the 422 UP assembly constituencies where elections were held, preferred to wait and watch. “As we are the largest single Party to have won, it is the constitutional obligation of the Governor to invite us to form the government. We are waiting for him to discharge his duty.” BJP state Chief Kalraj Mishra said. While Yadav and Kanshi Ram seemed men in hurry, who could not even wait for a meeting of their respective legislators called on Tuesday, the BJP seemed to have mentally prepared to sit in the opposition. “Our objection to Yadav being called to form the government is only based on procedure, we are not power hungry,” Mishra said.

While formal announcement of Results is being inordinately delayed, information from different government agencies and political parties indicated that the BJP and the SPBSP combine had secured 176 seats each till now. The tally of the Congress and the Janata Dal also stood at 28 each. The counting for the 422th Hathras constituency had started only on Tuesday.

The BJP leaders, who had hoped to win UP Assembly elections comfortably appeared in a mood of introspection, without being unduly worried, “We lost because the distribution of anti BJP votes was less desperesed this time as a result of virtual liquidation of the Congress and the Janata Dal. Otherwise, we have increased our support base and the results do not amount to a negative mandate on what happened in Ayodhya on December 6,” BJP spokesman Lalji Tandon said. A closer analysis of election results indicates that V.P.Singh aliment and his failure to take part in campaigning for JD in east UP, as well as the failure of the Congress to true even a fraction of Muslim votes in central UP and Rohailkhand cost the BJP dear.

Compared to 1991, the BJP lost 45 seats in UP assembly this time. The party’s maximum loss, ironically, was in the Faizabad division, which was the epicenter of the Rama temple movement leading to demolition of the disputed Structure on December 6 last year and subsequent dismissal of the BJP government. The BJP could retain only one of the six seats Ayodhya Faizabad district and lost 16 of the 32 seats it held in the entire division comprising Faizabad, Behraich, Gonda, Barabankiand Sultanpur districts.

BIP’s losses in eastern UP regions comprising Gorakhpur, Varanasi and divisions were also substantial, though it managed to retain its position in V.P.Singh’s bastion Allahabad division, In Kanpur, Jhansi and Garhwal and Kumaon divisions its losses were marginal.

Article extracted from this publication >>  December 3, 1993