PM Modi’s stamp writ large on UP, Uttarakhand cabinets

New Delhi: The second consecutive stints of the BJP governments in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand bear testimony to the impact of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, reflecting regional, generational, caste and gender balance. So, the newly-formed cabinets in the two states bear PM Modi’s stamp. Undoubtedly, PM Modi played a key role in the elections of both the states where the BJP registered resounding victories.
Since the beginning of the Modi era, UP and Uttarakhand are the first two states where the BJP has staged a big comeback to power under the leadership of sitting Chief Ministers appointed by the central leadership. That is the reason why Pushkar Singh Dhami has been given the CM post in Uttarakhand despite losing his seat. Yogi Adityanath has emerged as a stronger leader after BJP’s massive win in UP.
The BJP’s victories in the two states will facilitate the BJP’s performance in 2024. With this in view, the BJP made the swearing-in of CMs in both the states a memorable event. PM Modi, BJP national president J.P. Nadda and Union Home minister Amit Shah attended the events in both the states. Now, the BJP will make it a point to sustain the enthusiasm till 2024. The Cabinet formations signal that the leadership has kept in mind 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the political equations have been addressed for the polls now.
In the Modi era, UP and Uttarakhand are the only states where sitting CMs played an important role in ensuring BJP’s electoral victory. Otherwise, in other states the poll results were not as per the plan of the BJP. The saffron party lost in Jharkhand where sitting CM Raghubar Das could not lead the party to victory. In Maharashtra, BJP miscalculated the political equations and got out of power there. The party had to form an alliance government in Haryana. The BJP registered a wholesome victory in Assam, but it had to change CM as per some understanding and ex-Congress leader Himanta Biswa Sarma had to be given the CM post. The party had to change not only the CM, but the entire cabinet in Gujarat. Worse came when the party lost polls in Rajasthan, MP and Chhattisgarh. The party pulled out all the stops to win in West Bengal, but Mamata Banerjee’s resounding victory led to questions being raised over the central leadership of the BJP. The Opposition was under the impression that the BJP could be defeated in the next parliamentary polls. But the BJP’s big win in UP, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur stunned the opposition. PM Modi was confident of BJP’s win in these states and the BJP under his guidance chalked out strategy accordingly. The opposition resorted to traditional caste politics and got defeated as a result of that.
PM Modi’s charismatic leadership did play a crucial role in BJP’s performance in UP and Uttarakhand, but CMs’ influence also strengthened the party positions. CM Yogi Adityanath’s strict administrative skills created an impact in UP. Similarly, Pushkar Singh Dhami’s clean image helped BJP counter the anti-incumbency in Uttarakhand where the party’s image was dented following change of CMs twice.
Trivendra Singh Rawat, who PM Modi relied on, had to be removed from CM post. His successor Tirath Singh Rawat was also replaced by Dhami as the former’s position was weak in case of a bypoll. Though Dhami could not save his seat, he was given the top post because PM Modi relies on him. There was no doubt about Yogi being given the CM post again for the second consecutive stint in UP. Dhami’s reappointment as CM signals that PM Modi wants to check factionalism in the first place. Secondly, he is keen to ensure that a new BJP emerges in the hill state. The new cabinet in Uttarakhand lends credence to this fact. Now, leaders like Vijay Bahuguna, Ramesh Pokhriyal, Trivendra Singh Rawat, Bishan Singh Chuphal, Arvind Pandey and Banshidhar Bhagat will not be in the limelight as they used to be earlier. There may be some more changes in 2024. Inclusion of a youth leader like Saurabh Bahuguna in the cabinet and appointment of Ritu Khanduri as Assembly Speaker mark the beginning of reemergence of a stronger BJP in Uttarakhand.