Lucknow, July 10: The counting of votes for the Uttar Pradesh block president elections 2021 were held on Saturday. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won the elections with a thumping majority. The ruling party-supported candidates bagged over 630 seats. Meanwhile, the Samajwadi Party (SP) emerged as the the second largest party. The SP managed to win over 90 seats. Independents remained victorious in over 80 seats.  Meanwhile, Mayawati-led BSP failed to even reach double figure-mark.

Notably, these elections were considered as litmus test for the Yogi Adityanath government before the 2022 assembly elections in the state. The BJP had fielded 735 candidates, while its ally Apna Dal had given tickets to 14 candidates. The saffron party had reportedly supported candidates on the remaining 76 seats. Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated UP BJP worker for the party's victory in the block president elections. PM Modi said that the BJP won the elections due to the policies of the Yogi Adityanath government which benifitted comon people of the state.

PM Narendra Modi's Tweet:

The polling was held on Saturday for 476 posts of block panchayat chiefs in the state. The counting of votes began immediately after the polling ended. There are 1,710 candidates in the fray. There are reports of violence in several districts of Uttar Pradesh, including Etawah, Chandauli, Amroha and Hamirpur during the counting of votes. UP Block President Elections 2021: Rahul Gandhi, Mayawati, Priyanka Gandhi Slam UP Govt Over Violence During Nomination Filing.

On Friday, a total of 349 candidates for the block panchayat chief posts were elected unopposed. State Election Commissioner Manoj Kumar on Friday had said that 1,778 nomination papers were received for 825 posts of the block panchayat chief, of which 68 were cancelled and 187 withdrawn. As a result, 1,710 contested polls on Saturday.

Out of the total candidates elected unopposed, 334 belonged to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). UP BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh said under the leadership of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, a state of development and good governance has been established, and due to this reason, even in the three-tier panchayat elections, the ruling party emerged as victorious. UP Block Pramukh Elections: Widespread Violence in Various Districts on Nomination Filing Day for Polls (Watch Video).

Meanwhile, opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party, the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Congress, had accused the BJP of damaging democracy in the elections block chiefs. They alleged that the ruling government in the UP is misusing power and official machinery in the panchayat elections.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 10, 2021 03:01 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).