Yogi Adityanath’s popularity shrinks as resentment grows against UP government: Survey

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's popularity has drastically declined in the last three months, whereas the disenchantment with the state government is growing ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

His popularity after two years as the Uttar Pradesh CM, according to the Political Stock Exchange data, compiled by Axis My India for the India Today Group, has fallen by five percent in the last three months.

The strongman from Gorakhpur could have his priorities all wrong, the study suggested, referring to his alleged attempts at polarising the recently held state assembly elections along the communal lines.

Claiming that in the first tracking poll done by Axis for India Today in September, Yogi Adityanath enjoyed a popularity rating of 43 per cent, the study maintained that CM Yogi’s popularity was now 6 percent less than that of Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Raman Singh at the fag end of their third terms as CMs of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh respectively.

The study pointed out that at least 35 percent of the respondents said they were completely dissatisfied with the performance of the state government. It maintained that only 37 percent said they were completely satisfied.

Similarly, about nine percent said they were somewhat dissatisfied and 12 percent said they were somewhat satisfied.

Interestingly, the study further stated that the popularity ratings of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav rating have jumped by 8 percent from 29 percent in September to 37 percent in December.

Similarly, BSP leader Mayawati’s popularity has gone down from 18 percent to 15 percent in the last three months, according to the study, which also indicated that half the respondents wanted the SP, BSP and the Congress to join hands in the battle against the BJP.

With a sample size of 31,200, the study based on telephonic interviews was conducted in all 80 Parliamentary constituencies of the state.