UP district panchayat chief polls: Party-backed candidates won 67 of 75 seats, claims BJP
Lucknow, Jul 3: The Uttar Pradesh BJP has claimed that the party-backed candidates won 67 of 75 seats of the district panchayat chief, the voting for which was held on Saturday.
State BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh told reporters that the success of the party was due to the welfare policies initiated by its government and the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
"The BJP+ (BJP and its allies) has won 67 out of 75 seats of zila panchayat chairpersons. For these unprecedented results, I thank the people of the state and hardworking party workers," he said in a Hindi tweet.
The polling for the seats had begun at 11 am and continued till 3 pm.
Meanwhile, a video surfaced on social media, in which former Samajwadi Party MP from Chandauli Ramkishun Yadav can be seen falling at the feet of members of a zila panchayat, allegedly to seek votes for his nephew, prompting UP BJP spokesperson Rakesh Tripathi to take a jibe at his party.
In a Hindi tweet, Tripathi said, "Those (SP) who fled in the past elections were seen falling at the feet of voters and begging for votes. This took place on Friday night."
SP MLC Ashutosh Sinha said Yadav only touched the feet of independent voters.
"Tej Narayan Yadav is the nephew of Ramkishun Yadav. Tej Narayan is supported by the SP for the post of the zila panchayat chairperson," he told PTI.
Chairpersons of 22 zila panchayats were declared elected unopposed on Tuesday. Of these, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) claimed to have won 21 seats.
The state Election Commission did not announce the party affiliation of the winning candidates.
The panchayat polls or those for district panchayat chiefs are not held on a party symbol but candidates enjoy the tacit support of various parties.
The districts where zila panchayat chairpersons won unopposed are Saharanpur, Bahraich, Etawah, Chitrakoot, Agra, Gautam Buddh Nagar, Meerut, Ghaziabad, Bulandshahr, Amroha, Moradabad, Lalitpur, Jhansi, Banda, Shravasti, Balrampur, Gonda, Gorakhpur, Mau, Varanasi, Pilibhit and Shahjahanpur.
Zila panchayat chiefs are elected from among the elected members of zila panchayats.
The four-phase panchayat polls concluded in the state last month.
On Monday, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati had said her party has decided not to contest the zila panchayat chief elections as it wants to channel its energy on strengthening the organisation before the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls next year.
The BSP president asserted that the people of the state want her party to form the next government.
Once the BSP forms its government in the state, the majority of the zila panchayat chairman themselves will join the BSP as they cannot function without power. We have kept this fact in mind and so decided not to contest the election, she had said.
पंचायत से लेकर पार्लियामेंट तक!
— Swatantra Dev Singh (@swatantrabjp) July 3, 2021
भाजपा+ ने उत्तर प्रदेश के पंचायत चुनाव में 75 में से 67 सीटों पर विजय प्राप्त की है। इस अभूतपूर्व परिणाम के लिए मैं प्रदेश की जनता एवं भाजपा के परिश्रमी कार्यकर्ताओं का हृदय की गहराइयों से आभार व्यक्त करता हूं।#हर_पंचायत_भाजपा pic.twitter.com/qZJKqMAAVK
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
India eye U17 Women's Asian Cup history in decisive Lebanon clash
Suzhou (China) (PTI): Having lost to two continental heavyweights, India face a must-win game against Lebanon in the AFC U17 Women's Asian Cup here on Friday, knowing that victory could seal a first-ever qualification to the knockout stage of the competition.
After losing to Australia (0-2)and Japan (0-3) in Group B, the equation for India has become clear: one final match and one final chance to make the quarter-finals.
India are alive in the race for the knockout stage as one of the two best third-placed teams.
India currently hold a superior goal difference of -5 compared to Group C sides Philippines (-13) and Chinese Taipei (-14), who face each other on the final matchday.
That means either side would require a heavy-margin victory to overtake India’s goal difference if the Young Tigresses defeat Lebanon.
Furthermore, if Thursday evening's Group A fixture between Vietnam and Myanmar ends in a draw or the latter wins by less than three goals, India will confirm their place in the last eight with a victory, irrespective of the Group C result.
For India, playing their first AFC U17 Women's Asian Cup in 21 years, progressing beyond the group stage would mark a historic achievement.
Head coach Pamela Conti expects a very different challenge against Lebanon compared to the previous two matches.
The Italian believes the contest will demand more attacking flair since both teams require a win to qualify.
The West Asians, making their debut in the tournament, opened with a 0-13 loss against Japan, followed by a sensational point in a 1-1 draw with Australia.
"I watched Lebanon's game against Australia that ended 1-1. They are a team at our level, but they have very good attacking players. We need to be careful and not open up too much, because they can hurt us on the counter-attack," said Conti.
Unlike the opening two matches, where India spent large phases defending deep against physically and technically superior opponents, the Young Tigresses now have to play with greater attacking intent.
On Wednesday, the girls had recovery sessions indoors in the gym and the swimming pool. On Thursday, they had a 90-minute official training session involving tactical and set-piece work, and small-sided games.
Conti revealed that the team had long anticipated this decisive final group-stage encounter.
"I expect the girls to continue working hard and giving everything. I trust them a lot. We have prepared for this. We knew our qualification would come down to the match against Lebanon, and now we must give it everything," she said.
The stakes are not lost on the squad.
For a generation returning India to the AFC U17 Women's Asian Cup after more than two decades, the possibility of reaching the quarter-finals would represent another milestone in what has already been a landmark year for Indian women's football across senior, U20 and U17 levels.
While the former two could not make the last eight in their respective tournaments earlier this year, the U17 now have the golden opportunity to make it happen.
"If we qualify, it will be an incredible achievement for everyone, and for the country. We are focused on giving that joy to the nation. I hope it happens for the staff, for us, and especially for the players, because they are the protagonists," Conti said.
