Has a campaign begun against Yogi Adityanath within BJP-RSS?

Is the BJP leadership trying to create an environment against UP CM Yogi Adityanath with the help of RSS? Have both the BJP and the RSS now decided to make Yogi Adityanath responsible for the recent defeats in UP bypolls? Questions like these are now being discussed in the political corridors of Uttar Pradesh. After receiving the green signal from top BJP leaders, the old lobbyists of the RSS have begun to make public the BJP workers’ unhappiness against Yogi Adityanath, albeit in low tones.

The latest case is that of West Uttar Pradesh. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had visited Ghaziabad on Monday and during his visit, he was supposed to review of the party’s defeat in the recent byelections, particularly in Kairana and Noorpur, encourage the party’s workers, listen to their problems and if need be, give instructions to government officials so that the BJP MLAs, MPs and workers would face no problems in connecting with the people of the state.

In this programme, which was touted as a meeting to formulate a strategy for the upcoming general elections, 14 MPs and 59 MLAs (both the MLAs and MLCs) of 19 districts of Uttar Pradesh were invited. In this meeting, held at RKGIT Auditorium, on Meerut road, the chief minister was to take feedback on the functioning of the bureaucracy. On the basis of this feedback, action was meant to be taken against those government officials who weren’t listening to the legislators.

But CM Yogi did not listen to anyone. It is being said that the party's strategists feared, some MPs and MLAs would express their anger against the party. That's why no one was given the opportunity to speak. When one or two legislators, MPs and party officials attempted to speak, they were shushed. When they insisted, they were asked to reach Lucknow with their grievances.

In fact, many office bearers and some MLAs, who attended this meeting, are old and respected volunteers of the RSS. They are reportedly unhappy with the partisanship at the organisational level as well as within the bureaucracy in western Uttar Pradesh. Annoyed by not being able to talk to the Chief Minister, a group of these MLAs is now preparing to launch a campaign against the CM Yogi.

According to sources, immediately after the chief minister left, a group of these legislators held a closed-door meeting. Among those who seemed to be most angry was Loni MLA Nand Kishore Gurjar and his supporters.

Recently, the district police had reduced Nand Kishore Gurjar’s security. After that, he was allegedly assaulted on Sunday. The investigation into this matter is going on. But these incidents have brought to fore the factionalism within BJP.

On one hand, there is Yogi Adityanath’s camp and on the other, there are those BJP workers who have close connections with the RSS. The MLAs unhappy with the Ghaziabad meeting and annoyed at the attitude of CM are likely to take this matter to the top leaders.

It is important to note here that the Uttar Pradesh BJP has recently brought about a huge change in the province heads and had given responsibilities to the old loyals of the RSS. Chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s district Gorakhpur is also one among these districts where there was a change in local leadership.