Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary has been appointed as Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) next Uttar Pradesh president, announced Union Minister Piyush Goyal at party office in Lucknow on Sunday. Chaudhary, a seven-time Lok Sabha MP, will succeed Bhupendra Chaudhary.
The announcement was made in presence of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Deputy Chief Ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak, and other leaders. "I am happy to announce that Pankaj Chaudhary has been unanimously elected as the BJP Uttar Pradesh president," Goyal said.
This comes a day after Chaudhary filed his nominations. He was the only candidate to do so. "Upon arriving at Lucknow airport today, I received a warm welcome from the dedicated party workers. I express my heartfelt gratitude to all the workers for the affection and respect they showed me," he posted on X on Saturday.
BJP eyes 2027 UP elections
Chaudhary, who hails from Gorakhpur, is a seven-time MP and a popular Kurmi leader in the state. Kurmis are categorised as Other Backward Classes (OBC) and have a significant population in the state's central and eastern regions. Through Chaudhary's appointment, the BJP is looking to counting Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party's PDA formula ahead of next year's panchayat polls and the 2027 Assembly elections.
The Kurmi had supported the Samajwadi Party during the 2022 Assembly elections and the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. So far, BJP has had only three Kurmi leaders as UP's state chief -- former MP Vinay Katiyar, former minister Om Prakash Singh and Swatantra Dev Singh. Chaudhary is also considered to be close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
Meanwhile, his daughter-in-law, Himangi Chaudhary, had earlier thanked PM Modi and Adityanath for reposing faith in Chaudhary and entrusting him with the responsibility of leading the party in the state. "There is happiness across the family, including among the grandchildren," she said.
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