Party organisation is bigger than govt, workers should be respected: UP Deputy CM Maurya

Addressing a one-day state working committee meeting of the BJP, Maurya said the Lok Sabha poll results did not meet expectations and blamed 'lies and deception' of the opposition for the reverses.

Lucknow: Asserting that party organisation will always be bigger than the government, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Keshav Prasad Maurya on Sunday said all ministers, MLAs, and public representatives should respect workers and take care of their dignity.

Addressing a one-day state working committee meeting of the BJP, he said the Lok Sabha poll results did not meet expectations and blamed "lies and deception" of the opposition for the reverses. He likened the "spirit" of BJP workers to Lord Hanuman, who was able to trounce the opposition after he was reminded of his forgotten powers, and expressed confidence that the party will bounce back in the 2027 assembly polls.

Maurya said that the time has come to answer the opposition which has become a "machine of lies".

He said that in the meeting of the working committee, it has to be decided that "even if the SP, BSP and the Congress unite in 2027, we have to cross the target of 300 (out of 403 seats) on our strength." "Whatever is lacking in 2024, we will prove our strength by forming a BJP government with a huge majority in 2027," he said.

Recalling the contribution made by Uttar Pradesh in forming the Modi governments in 2014 and 2019, he said, "Despite our efforts in 2024, the (Lok Sabha election) results were not as per our expectations." Attacking the opposition parties, Maurya said, "The SP and the Congress in the form of 'saapnath' and 'naagnath' have pushed us behind for some time by lying and cheating.

"But in 2027, we will again form the BJP government in the state with a target of crossing 300 (seats)." He said the spirit of the BJP workers is like that of Lord Hanuman.

"He has forgotten his power for some time due to the lies and deception of SP-Congress. In 2027, he will again defeat the opposition alliance with his strength and prove that BJP is invincible," Maurya said.

He stressed that he is a party worker first and a deputy chief minister later.

"The organisation was bigger than the government, is bigger and will always be bigger. The doors of my residence at 7 Kalidas Marg are open to everyone. I am Deputy Chief Minister later but first I am a worker," he said.

The BJP leader said that all the ministers, MLAs, and public representatives should respect all workers and take care of their dignity.

In the recent Lok Sabha polls, the BJP won 33 seats in UP, down from 62 it clinched in 2019. The Congress won six seats, while its I.N.D.I.A. bloc ally Samajwadi Party bagged 37 seats out of 80.

Speaking in the same vein, Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak said that countless workers of the party in the state have worked with "their blood and sweat" to bring the BJP to power by fighting the "oppressive" governments of SP, BSP and Congress.

"Since 2014, the BJP has continuously made progress in UP. In 2019 (Lok Sabha elections) too, despite the alliance of SP and BSP, the BJP got a huge majority.

"In 2017 and 2022 also, due to the hard work and fighting spirit of the workers, the BJP government was formed in the state with victory on two-thirds of the seats," Pathak said.

Pathak said the BJP was working with transparency in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, but the opposition spread confusion, made false promises and "we did not get the results as expected".

He said, "Lies and deceit do not last long. We will have to go door-to-door and inform about the deeds of the deceitful opposition. In 2027, BJP will have to work hard to form the government for the third time," he said.

Taking a dig at the opposition, he said that the Congress "tore apart the Constitution, imposed Emergency and turned the country into a prison. Bhimrao Ambedkar was also insulted." "The Congress ecosystem kept working against Baba Saheb. Baba Saheb has also mentioned this in his biography," he said.

He alleged that the Samajwadi Party has always misled people regarding reservations.

"The policies of the SP government have been to promote goons and mafia. Under the SP rule, daughters were not allowed to go out alone. Traders were robbed in broad daylight.

"They used to do their business in fear and panic. Even builders were not able to get out of the clutches of the mafia. The state has not forgotten the anarchy of SP," he said.