Although the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh are scheduled for March- April 2012, Mayawati can recommend assembly polls even late this year if she finds the situation politically convenient to her party BSP. She is testing the political mood of the people in the state and already she has taken the lead in making preparations for the assembly polls. She has held a series of meetings with her party MPs, MLAs and MLCs and she is touring all the districts and asking her supporters to be ready for polls at any time of the year.

Opposition sources however mention that the chief minister is not feeling confident about holding the polls in the due time as the opposition parties, especially the Samajwadi Party and the Congress may make use of the period to have some understanding against the BSP. The BSP supremo does not want to face a united opposition and she is using her tricks to get the opposition parties divided.

The reasons being attributed for early polls are failure of chief minister to hold local bodies without party symbols and through public. Chief Minister Mayawati had brought amendment bill in UP legislature and got it passed too for holding local bodies elections without party symbol and sent it to governor for ratification. The entire opposition protested the Mayawati government’s move for amendment bill for local bodies inside the House as well on the streets. They did not allow UP Legislature to function for several days and organised state-wide agitation.

Samajwadi Party, BJP, Congress and RLD delegations met the Governor BL Joshi and submitted their memoranda that amendment in local bodies polls would not be in the interest of democracy. Under pressure from entire opposition parties, Governor BL Joshi told the chief minister that it would not be interest of the state to hold the local bodies polls through amending the rules. So far he had not given his assent to the bill.

After meeting the Governor BL Joshi, chief minister Mayawati called the meting of party MPs, MLAs, MLCs and state coordinators and asked them to be prepared to hold local bodies elections on party line. But Mayawati is aware of the fact that her party had limited appeal and influence in urban areas and adverse results would harm party’s prospect in forthcoming assembly polls. That is why she finalised the names of party candidates for assembly polls and asked them to campaign. All of a sudden, chief minister Mayawati also decided to hold review meetings in the state capital and asked the state bureaucrats to gear up for development projects and maintain law and order situation. She also created a record of sort by visiting almost all the 72 districts and reviewed the development projects.

The opposition parties also challenged the ruling BSP and Mayawati government for deterioration in law and order and atrocities on women and dalits .All these parties are too involved in finalising the party tickets as early as possible. Samajwadi Party, the main opposition party, held state-wide agitation twice and succeeded in mobilising party workers all over the state. Samajwadi party president and national general secretary Mohan Singh have been repeatedly been saying that there could be early polls for UP Assembly in UP and gave call to party workers at Gorakhpur state convention to be ready to face the elections.

Former chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and Samajwadi Party president and his son Akhilesh Yadav were put under house arrest and the party workers were became victim of brutal lathi-charge from police force.

Similarly, BJP also held state-wide agitation to prepare ground to challenge BSP government on deterioration of law and order and atrocities on women and all-round failure of the government. BJP workers too were mercilessly beaten up by the police force. Congress Party too has announced its plan to hold state-wide agitation and series of rallies to be addressed by Mrs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi to draw the attention of people towards the failure of Mayawati government. Apprehending early polls, RLD has already formalised pact with six smaller parties like Peace Party.

CPI general secretary AB Bardhan, who visited Lucknow to address state conference, also announced that Left parties would start their agitational programme from May in UP.

So UP is full of action and drama involving all major political parties and their leaders are anticipating early polls for UP Assembly. (IPA Service)