CM Yogi Adityanath hails new UP BJP chief, says party will gain momentum

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said Pankaj Chaudhary's election to the post of BJP's state president would give fresh momentum to the party and the government in the state.

Addressing a gathering after Pankaj Chaudhary's election, Adityanath thanked Union minister Piyush Goyal and former Union minister Mahendra Nath Pandey for overseeing the poll process.

"I congratulate the newly elected state president, Pankaj Chaudhary. Today in UP, after the completion of the process of election, an experienced organisational worker has been given the responsibility of state president. This would give fresh momentum to the party and the government in the state in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision," he said, according to a statement.

Pankaj Chaudhary, Union Minister of State for Finance, was on Sunday named the new president of the BJP's UP unit, with his election being formally announced by Goyal here.

Adityanath credited outgoing state BJP chief Bhupendra Chaudhary for strengthening the party during his three-and-a-half-year tenure.

The chief minister exhorted party workers to strengthen the organisation at the booth level for the 2027 UP Assembly polls, and make full use of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

He described the exercise as an opportunity to "strengthen democracy". He said large gaps had emerged in the voter list following the revision.

Stressing that elections are won at the booth level, the chief minister cited Prime Minister Modi's slogan "Mera Booth, Sabse Mazboot" and urged party workers to intensify voter list verification during the SIR exercise.

He alleged serious irregularities in voter lists prepared by the opposition, including duplicate and fake entries, and asked workers to identify and file objections against ineligible names while ensuring genuine voters are added.

Adityanath said the January 2025 electoral roll had 15.44 crore voters, but that number came down to around 12 crore after the SIR. He claimed that a large proportion of the missing voters were BJP supporters.

Adityanath also called on the party workers to celebrate the birth centenary of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on December 25 across the state.

He said the double-engine government has developed the National Inspiration Site in Lucknow, where 65-foot-tall bronze statues of Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee, Pt. Deendayal Upadhyaya, and Atal Bihari Vajpayee have been installed, along with a dedicated museum.

The site is likely to be inaugurated in the presence of Prime Minister Modi, followed by a major public rally.

Highlighting the state's development trajectory, Adityanath said UP has emerged as a revenue-surplus state and a major destination for investment and tourism, asserting that law and order has improved significantly over the past eight-and-a-half years.

He said nearly 8.75 lakh youth have been provided government jobs in a transparent manner, while employment opportunities have expanded through traditional industries and large-scale investment projects.

The chief minister also outlined infrastructure and economic initiatives, including improvements in power supply, expressways, rail connectivity, airports and metro networks. He also cited the Uttar Pradesh International Trade Show as a platform enabling local products to access global markets.