Explained | Congress' move to appoint two general secretaries in Uttar Pradesh

priyanka gandhi vadra, jyotiraditya scindia,uttar pradesh congress

After being sidestepped by Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress has made a big move. The party has appointed two big names as general secretaries of the state — Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Jyotiraditya Scindia.

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has been appointed as General Secretary East, while Scindia has been given command of the West. The two replace Ghulam Nabi Azad, who has been appointed AICC general secretary for Haryana.

The Congress’ move to appoint two separate general secretaries is a strategic move to win majority of seats.

With 80 Lok Sabha seats, Uttar Pradesh sends the highest number of MPs. Of this, East Uttar Pradesh accounts for 42 seats, while the remaining 38 is in the West region.

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in the East

Priyanka’s appointment to East UP seems to be a direct challenge to the SP-BSP alliance and the BJP.

The BSP-SP combine in eastern UP will be formidable. Also, the BJP is resting its hopes on the political influence of the Narendra Modi-Yogi Adityanath duo in the region bordering Bihar. Both have a stronghold over the East, with Modi’s constituency Varanasi and Adityanath's seat Gorakhpur both falling in this region.

Also, Priyanka knows the nerve of East UP as she has campaigned for brother Rahul and mother Sonia Gandhi in Amethi and Rae Bareli, respectively. The party were able to win only these two seats in the last Lok Sabha polls in 2014.

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Furthermore, Priyanka’s arrival in politics will motivate and galvanize Congress cadre all over the state, which have witnessed massive defeats in the last general and assembly polls.

Jyotiraditya Scindia in West

After winning Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls in 2018, Jyotiraditya Scindia was in the running for the post of Chief Minister. However, the young leader, who was a key force behind the party's victory in the Hindi heartland, was neither appointed CM nor deputy CM of the state.

On January 23, he was appointed General Secretary of UP West.

The Member of Parliament (MP) from Guna — a constituency that falls near the border region of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh — Scindia has influence in the region.

Also, the leader has gained wide popularity after playing a significant role in the recently concluded Madhya Pradesh elections.

With his appointment, the Congress expects to gain foothold in the West, where the party has nearly no influence. The party had won no seats in the West in the last general elections.

Senior Congress leader and MP CM Kamal Nath also hailed the move and said his contribution will be key to the party's election preparations and he was sure that the young leader would do a wonderful job in his new role.