Lucknow, Oct 28: The elections for the Legislative Council's Teachers' and Graduates' constituencies, seen as a crucial indicator of the political climate ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, are witnessing a fierce contest between the BJP and the Samajwadi Party.
In the ongoing vote count for 11 seats, the BJP has secured victory in four, while the Samajwadi Party's Lal Bihari Yadav has won the Varanasi Teachers' constituency. The BJP has retained both the Teachers' and Graduates' seats in Meerut.
Umesh Dwivedi achieved a hat-trick by winning the Lucknow Teachers' seat for the third consecutive time.
Meanwhile, the counting of votes for the remaining seats is underway. Polling for these 11 seats, comprising five Graduates' and six Teachers' constituencies, took place on October 23, with a total of 152 candidates in the fray.
The outcome will be determined by the votes of approximately 14.81 lakh electors. The counting process began at 8:00 a.m. on Tuesday across seven centres in the state.
Tight security arrangements are in place, with the process being monitored via CCTV cameras and videography. The BJP emerged victorious in both the Teachers' and Graduates' constituencies of the Meerut-Saharanpur division.
For the Teachers' seat, BJP candidate Shrichand Sharma won by securing 18,099 votes, while in the Graduates' constituency, the BJP's Dinesh Goyal secured victory with 24,928 votes.
Hari Singh Dhillon of the BJP won from the Bareilly-Moradabad Teachers' constituency. As mentioned, Umesh Dwivedi of the BJP secured a hat-trick by winning the Lucknow Teachers' constituency for the third time in a row.
Following his victory, Umesh Dwivedi expressed his gratitude to the teachers and voters.
"I express my gratitude and thanks to all my respected teachers and fellow voters. I also extend my heartfelt thanks to the Bharatiya Janata Party, Yogi-ji, Modi-ji, and the party's lakhs of workers and office-bearers for placing their trust in me," he said.
Meanwhile, in the Varanasi Teachers' constituency, Lal Bihari Yadav of the Samajwadi Party emerged victorious.
Following his victory, he stated, "The BJP's claims of winning both seats had proven hollow. Teachers had placed their trust in Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, and campaigning by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had no impact on the election."
Lal Bihari Yadav also accused the administration of harassing his supporters during the election. He alleged that some individuals were placed under house arrest, while others were pressured not to leave their school premises.
There has been no official response from the administration regarding these allegations. During the vote counting for the Agra Teachers' Constituency, a dispute arose between the Samajwadi Party and BJP candidates.
SP candidate Akash Agarwal alleged that he was assaulted at the counting centre and that his 'kurta' was torn; he held BJP supporters responsible for the incident.
Following the incident, tension escalated at the counting centre, with supporters from both parties confronting one another. Conversely, BJP workers dismissed the allegations, claiming that Akash Agarwal had torn his own 'kurta'. BJP workers also staged a sit-in protest.
Police Commissioner Deepak Kumar stated that both sides have levelled accusations of assault against each other, leading to a contentious situation at the counting centre. The counting of votes for the Gorakhpur-Faizabad Teachers' Constituency is taking place at the Commerce Department of Gorakhpur University. Here, the Samajwadi Party has boycotted the counting process, alleging electoral malpractice.
SP leaders alleged that the democratic process is being compromised, claiming that administrative officials and observers are working to ensure the victory of the BJP candidate. These allegations have not been independently verified. A tight contest between the BJP and the SP is also being observed in the Graduates' Constituencies.
In the Allahabad-Jhansi Graduates' Constituency, SP candidate Mansingh Yadav took the lead following the fifth round of counting. In the Lucknow Graduates' Constituency, SP candidate Kanti Singh has been leading since the initial rounds.
Meanwhile, for the Varanasi Graduates' constituency seat, the contest is between Ashutosh Sinha of the SP and Kedar Singh of the BJP. The counting of first-preference votes has commenced here.
The result for this seat is expected to be declared later in the day. In the remaining constituencies, the counting of votes is currently underway.
--IANS