UP poll results: 'Lotus' blooms on Agra’s Muslim-dominated booths, BJP gets 4 times more votes than 2017
India Today
In the 2017 Assembly elections, the BSP and SP single-handedly claimed all the Muslim votes. But this time, the number of votes polled by BJP candidates increased by four times at Muslim majority polling stations.
It seems that the triple talaq law and various government schemes had an impact on the Muslim-dominated settlements in Agra during the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. The number of votes polled by BJP candidates increased by four times at Muslim majority polling stations, including Mantola, Dholikhar, Sadarbhatti, Kotwali, Azampada, Nai ki Mandi, Wazirpura, and Tajganj.
In the last elections, the BSP got nearly all the votes at the polling booths of Sagir Fatima Inter College, Anwari Nilofar Inter College, and Ahmadiya Hanifiya Inter College in Mantola, Dholikhar region. This time the BJP candidate got good votes. In the last election at Ahmadiya Hanifiya Center, the BJP candidate got only 30 votes in 6 booths, but this time the number of votes increased to 113.
Similarly, in four booths at Sagir Fatima Inter College, BJP candidate Yogendra Upadhyay got 14 votes last time; in 2022, it increased to 42 votes. In the last election, 1, 8, 12, 2, 3, 4 votes were received on the booths respectively but this time 35, 40, 14, 8, 8, 8 votes were received in the same booths. In this way, BJP got four times more votes at this center.
READ: Why more women voted for the BJP in 2022 elections | Analysis
The booths of Sagir Fatima polled 6, 4, 2, 2 votes in the previous Assembly election, while this time, they totalled 21, 11, 6, and 4 votes. In the last election at this center, only 14 votes were received, but this time their number increased to 42. Female voters voted for the BJP on the issue of triple talaq.
In the 2017 elections, the BSP single-handedly swept the Muslim votes in the booths of Mantola, Dholikhar and Sadarbhatti. But this time, people got on the Samajwadi Party’s cycle. The SP candidate received 136, 465, 419, 426, 401, 401 votes in Ahmadiya Hanifiya booths, whereas last time, the BSP's elephant scored here with 504, 447, 368, 385, 357 votes.Similar was the case at the Sagir Fatima polling station, where the BSP dominated the polls earlier. This time the SP candidate got 259, 382, 299, 325 votes. Back in 2017, Mayawati’s party netted 303, 401, 351, 371 votes on the same booths.
READ | From governor to MLA: How Babyrani Maurya redefined cycle of politicsIn the Cantonment assembly constituency, the SP fielded Kunwar Chand Vakil, while Dr Bhartendu Arun was the BSP candidate. Gwalior Road, Deori Road, Tundpura, Kotli Bagichi area, Sarai Khwaja, Naripura area were the strongholds of the BSP, but this time BJP’s Dr GS Dharmesh took the lead here.In these constituencies, BJP got 620, 435, 543, 455, 516, 318, 331, 327 votes, while Dr Bhartendu Arun of the BSP could get only 153, 271, 209, 185, 22 votes. Usually, in the last five rounds, the BSP used to dominate the election, but this time, the saffron party took the lead at the same polling stations.
